Family ties
by Alora05
Summary: Family is the most important thing you will ever have, and to protect it, sometimes you've got to do things that might hurt, but you do it because you love them. The turtles experience this in a way that may mark them forever...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: My first turtle's fanfic, so be nice. I hope it goes well because I love the turtles to bits. Please enjoy!  
Edit: Please don't be put off by the OC. Give the story a chance.

I'm dedicating this chapter to my own younger brother, because i love him to bits no matter how much he annoys the life out of me. lol.

The turtles and related characters belong to Mirage/ Eastman + Laird/ 4Kids… blah, blah, blah. But Samantha and Daniel are mine.

_- Even though I sometimes don't act like it, I love you, and I will do anything to protect you…-_

His laughter always made Samantha happy. She loved to see him smile; to see him enjoy himself; it made her smile to see him like that. After all, that's what tonight's trip had been all about. They didn't often get the chance to go out and have fun together like a normal brother and sister should, and these rare occasions should definitely not be left to pass.

Daniel, her little brother, had been on about going to see this film in the cinema for ages; Sam had never even heard of it, but apparently it was all his friends were on about at school. So, Samantha took her time off work to take him to see it, and have a nice meal out in the local pizzeria after. Whenever they took a night out, they would often go there for a meal, as her little brother loved the mountainous chocolate sundaes they sold for desert and it wasn't badly priced either.

It was dark now and the streets of New York were beginning to become riddled with some of the troublesome nightlife that threatened most people, but Sam didn't mind. That's not to say she wasn't worried, because she was always on the alert. Though if anyone tried _anything_ while her little brother was there, so help them. She wasn't exactly well known for keeping her temper.

However, her spirits were high as she drifted with her nine year old brother, arm draped protectively over his shoulders, back to their small apartment. It was only a couple of blocks from where they were currently basking in the rare jubilation of a fun evening out.

"I give that a definite eight!" Sam laughed as she held up her fingers, marking the boisterous burp that had been emitted from her brother only moments before out of ten.

Her brother grinned with pride at this verbal pat on the back as he waltzed beside his older sister, head held high and laughter on his lips.

"Come on kiddo, this way," She smirked, gently nudging Daniel in the direction of a large dump that they used as a short cut back to their apartment. They used it more often than not due to the fifteen minutes it cut off their journey time.

"Aw, but it stinks," the nine year old boy whined as he dragged his feet across the ground to the open gate of the dump. Truth be told, he just wanted to night to last that bit longer, and if that meant going the long way home, he didn't mind.

"Not as bad as your room," Sam teased, nudging the young boy softly along once more.

"My room resembles that remark," Daniel huffed, folding his arms as he fell in step with his sister as they traversed through the gate, knowing that he wouldn't get his own way.

"I think you mean resent, Danny," the older teen rolled her eyes, her remark wasted on the carefree child.

Of course, on a rare jubilant night like this one, Murphy's Law has a tendency to kick in and ruin everything with great ease. This exact thought ran across Samantha's mind as she heard several rowdy voices coming from the path ahead.

_Fan-bloody-tastic._

That was just what she needed. Some punk kids ready to give her and her brother a bad time just because they wanted to get home. Sometimes, Sam believed that good luck didn't exist in her world.

"Stick by me at all times," She told her brother protectively, taking gentle hold of his hand. "Don't let these guys trouble you."

Daniel looked up to catch the gaze of his older sister, frowning when he caught a glimpse of worry in her eyes that seemed to quickly fade as she flashed him a confident smile.

"No worries, 'k?" Sam smiled at Daniel, who nodded and forced a small smile in reply.

Samantha knew that the best idea was to turn back and go the long way round, but she wasn't about to stand down to a load of arrogant jerks just because they were spanning the pathway of the dump. She could handle a few perps after all.

The eyes of the young female naturally narrowed to a determined stare as she carefully picked her way across the path to the edge of a small turning. Backing against the wall of abandoned rubbish, she peered round, scanning the unruly gang for any major threat. Although they all just looked like a bunch of everyday thugs, there were quite a few of them, and she didn't want to chance an encounter if she could help it.

Feeling the hand in hers tighten temporarily, she turned and looked down upon her younger sibling, whose eyes were awash with fear, even if his face attempted to cover it up. Sam couldn't help but smile at the courage in her mischievous brother. Her smile seemed to calm him down a bit, so Samantha allowed her attention to turn back to the hell-raising youths.

Her eyes washed over the scene, looking for any cover that may prevent a skirmish between them to occur. She didn't want her brother involved in anything that may endanger his safety. Though, she admitted to herself, just bringing him this way was endangering his safety.

"Right," She said after a while, turning to her brother. "Stay low, silent and close to me."

Crouching down and making sure her brother followed suit, Sam made her way around the corner, quickly and silently shifting herself behind a crushed car. In her assessment of the area, she'd noticed a couple of mounds and crushed cars lining the edge of the occupied site, and deemed them worthy enough cover to get them through the dump unnoticed. Double checking that her brother was next to her, even though his hand was still in hers, she listened for any sounds that they may have been detected during their first move.

A random thought flitted across her mind as the adrenaline pumped through her body, and a smile slowly adorned her face, as she related this to the stealth training that she used to do with her Grandfather and Ben…

That was when she banished the thought from her mind, and the smile faded; her attention immediately returning to the situation at hand.

The first leap had been fine, there had been hardly anyone nearby that would've noticed a flicker of the shadows. This next part, on the other hand, was far more difficult. A small patch of light shone across the path to the mound, and a number of thugs were talking and 'making merry' just a few yards away.

Turning to her brother, she formulated a plan.

"Danny, listen carefully. I'm going to go over to that mound first, to make sure the coast is clear. Then, when I signal you, you run as fast and as silently as you can to me. Can you do that for me?" Sam asked her younger brother, noticing the immediate apprehension in his eyes.

"Don't leave me Sammy," the nine year old whispered hurriedly, clinging to his older sister's hand tightly.

He used the nickname that always made her do whatever he wanted, even though she disliked it with most parts of her being. Scowling internally, she shook off the ominous protective feeling. She wasn't about to give up now.

"It's going to be fine. Just like one of those games we used to play with Grandpa," her voice was quiet but determined, and Daniel knew now that nothing was going to change her mind.

Nodding regrettably, his hand unwillingly left the comfort of his older sister's and fell lamely to his side; his bright periwinkle eyes never leaving Sam for a second.

Samantha returned to the task at hand, her eyes peering perilously over the hood of the bent and broken car, looking intently at the gang for the opportunity to arise so that she could cross over between her current hiding place, to the mound of rubbish across from her.

As soon as she was sure the attention of the perps was elsewhere, she made a break for it, running swiftly but silently over the muddy earth to the mound of junk that she had earlier deemed worthy to hide behind.

However, when she found herself hiding behind it, she realised that she should've spent a lot longer assessing her surroundings. The relatively large heap had several small, seemingly harmless gaps in it.

People often made the mistake of believing that spiders were small and seemingly harmless. Yet one bite off a particular species could kill a fully grown man.

Sam hated spiders.

Cursing inwardly, she made a careful step away from the mass of precariously perched material so as to make sure not to disturb any of it and give away her position. This, however, turned out not to be the best idea she'd ever had. In fact, she thought, it may have been one of her worst.

As she stepped back, her foot landed on a small, seemingly harmless iron bar that hit the side of the stack, dislodging several pocket-sized pieces of junk, which in turn dislodged some larger pieces of junk causing a minor avalanche of rubbish down the front of the heap.

Samantha grimaced at the sheer sound of it all. Then grimaced some more when she heard several startled voices remarking on the sudden collapse of the fairly large mound of crap that sat behind them. She hoped that Daniel had the sense to stay well hidden.

"Oi, Ice, go see what the hell happened," a gruff voice commanded.

His orders were not questioned, but met with theories on what might've caused it as a shift of weight told Sam that one of the thugs was heading her way.

"Could'a been a rat!"

"Hope it's some fresh meat. Been itchin' to smack somethin' all day."

"Speak for ye'self. I'm sick o' getin' beaten up all the damn time."

"Especially by those green freaks."

"I hope it ain't them."

"Well, even if it is, we'll be ready. We Purple Dragons don't go down so easy."

_Purple Dragons, damn_, Sam thought angrily as she awaited her imminent discovery. These punks always wanted to cause trouble. They were everywhere, like a damn plague of cockroaches. When you thought you'd gotten rid of them all, they'd reappear out of nowhere.

_Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. _

Sam hated Murphy's Law too.

Curling her hands into fists, she closed her eyes and her breath hitched as a rough hand grabbed her shoulder and dragged her from her pathetic hiding place.

"Heh, heh, heh. T'is a little girly all by her lonesome," the perp grinned evilly, as he pushed and shoved Sam towards the group.

The gang of Purple Dragons looked as if Christmas had come early, and they all began to laugh cruelly as the young woman was shoved into their sights.

"Not half bad lookin' either," the gruff voice from earlier commented, the owner standing and approaching Sam with a half-drunken swagger.

As he stopped in front of her, she could smell the stale booze, B.O. and cheap cologne. It made her stomach turn and she turned her face to try and get away from the stench. But a sharp hand grabbed her chin and pulled it around roughly so she stood face to face with the disgusting male.

"How's about havin' a little bit o' fun, eh boys?"

The sadistic grin on his face was enough to make Sam grimace and pull away sharply as a chorus of cruel laughter reached her ears.

"Touch me again, and I'll kick your arse," the teenage girl snapped viciously, glaring at the gang as if daring one of them to make a move.

"I like 'em feisty," the older male growled, his hand shooting out and grabbing Samantha's arm roughly, his nails digging into her skin.

"I said, don't touch me," Sam replied, her free arm swinging round, taking hold of his wrist and twisting it in a defensive move her Grandpa had taught her.

The dirty man yelped in pain, and in his surprise let go of Sam's arm as his own was twisted painfully around to his back. He found himself on his tiptoes to try and lessen the pain on his shoulder.

"Oi, get orf him you slag!"

Sam didn't want a confrontation, but it seemed as if this one was inevitable. Letting go of the man's arm she had previously been twisting, Sam turned to roundhouse kick one guy square in the chest, making him fly painfully into the solid earth.

Ducking as a baseball bat flew dangerously over her head, she placed herself in a defensive stance, sweeping her leg underneath that of the man in front, causing him to fall to the ground with a loud thud. Carefully making sure to step on his groin as she leapt across him, the young fighter barely missed being caught by a flying chain.

Samantha grinned, backing away slightly now she had all of them in her sights. Stopping, she positioned herself in an offensive stance, beckoning the perps forward teasingly with one hand, "Bring it on chumps."

That was when all hell broke loose, and Danny could only just make out his sister in the middle of the brawl. He'd only ever seen her _practice_ her katas before, and spar with members of their family in a training arena. Never before had he seen her in battle. Her moves were performed with fierce precision; a brutal fire driving the power behind each hit. It was like watching a kung-foo action movie.

Several times, one member of the gang caught her with a baseball bat in the side, or a lucky punch round the face. These were the times when Daniel thought that he could help her; that she needed him. But his sister would soon recover with a deadly blow to her foe, and Danny could merely suppress a cheer. He knew that if he were to unveil himself, he would just put both of them in more danger, and that he couldn't do.

Though, as a hand clasped his shoulder and pulled him roughly from his hiding place, he knew that he was in as much danger as he could be, and things were soon to get a whole lot worse.

"SAM!" He yelled in fear, and regretted it almost at once.

"Danny!" The teenage female replied in horror, the momentary distraction allowing a Purple Dragon to smack her squarely around her back, knocking her to the floor.

"Look'ee here, they must know each o'va," the perp holding Daniel grinned maliciously.

"Get your creepy hands off o' him!" Sam cried out in rage, leaping off her feet and going for the male holding her brother by the scruff of his neck.

However, the knife that soon appeared at her brother's throat stopped her in her tracks, and made her glare in anger at the gang member that held her younger sibling.

"Don't you dare hurt him or I'll…"

"Or you'll what, missy?" the gang member holding her dear brothers life at the edge of a knife snapped viciously towards her.

For once, Sam was at a loss for what to say or what to do. The moronic male was right; there was nothing she could do. Her eyes moved across so that they fell onto the frightened face of Daniel, her beloved brother. She would do anything for him, absolutely anything. The gaze that stared at her brother softened, a sense of failure burning into her thoughts. She could do nothing for him. She'd failed him; failed as an older sister; as a protector. Not only that, but she'd failed her parents too; she'd promised to look after her little brother and she couldn't even do that.

Sam's gaze hardened as it turned back to the knife wielding gang member. "What do you want?" Her voice cracked as she asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

Yet the answer came in the form of pain, as what she guessed must've been a lead pipe crashed ferociously into her chest, a small crack alerting her to the breaking of at least one rib. If she hadn't of heard the crack over her scream, then the pain that rocketed through her definitely confirmed the breakage. She hadn't realised she had even fallen to her knees until the temporary threat of unconsciousness passed, and she could finally draw short painful breaths.

"That answer your question?" A voice cackled ruthlessly from above her line of sight which currently focused on the earth at the perps feet.

Samantha dare not look up, but she wouldn't give these guys the satisfaction of knowing that they'd won. Grimacing with the pain of her chest as she moved, the determined young woman slowly got to her feet, and stood unsteadily as she clutched her chest.

"Want more, eh?"

That was when saw the fist hurtling towards her face, but did nothing to stop it as it collided painfully with her right cheek. Stumbling, she struggled to regain her balance and focus her eyes once more on the group of males. As soon as she'd done that though, she felt something else collide with the side of her face, stinging as it left its mark and knocked her once more off balance. The only thing she could do was try and stay standing; to stay strong for her brother.

Wincing as she moved herself into a more comfortable stance, she awaited the next blow to come, spitting the blood she tasted in her mouth onto the ground beside one of the group.

"My grandmother could hit harder than that," She taunted with a small manic chuckle, the crack of her voice making the tease sound weaker than she thought it would. If she was going to go down, she'd have her fun too.

"Oh really," one voice growled dangerously, as the owners bat swung treacherously towards Sam's knee.

The resounding violent thud made Sam yelp with pain as she found herself once more on her knees in the dirt. This time, the teen had no idea whether her knee was broken or not, but the thumping pain that shot through it every time she moved signalled that whatever had happened, she wouldn't be able to put any weight on it.

Sam placed her hands palm down in front of her, trying to shift her weight off the wounded knee so the throbbing would hopefully stop, or at least lessen. Wincing, she then attempted once more to straighten and stand up, but a worn boot stood on her left hand menacingly preventing that from happening. Immediately knowing what was going to happen, she flexed her other fingers so that they were well out of the way as the pressure of the boot increased, and continued to increase on the two fingers that it stood on.

Biting down on her lip to stop any sort of noise escaping her, she closed her eyes and tried to focus on anything else but the pain in her left hand that she felt at that moment. It was at that point that the boot stepped away, and Samantha brought her left hand protectively to her chest, cradling it in her other arm.

"Had enough already?" A voice cackled condescendingly from above her.

The scowl that adorned Sam's face at that point could've killed a man with a single stare, but of course she didn't have that power to her advantage. However, while she couldn't kill with a look, she could stay strong for her little brother; she wouldn't be seen to give up.

Using her right hand, and her left leg to balance on, she pushed herself up; almost crying out as her ribs cracked and her right knee throbbed. Hobbling to gain her balance, she looked up, her eyes glazing over as she stared at Danny, a soft smile growing on her face. A single tear fell down her cheek, mixing with the sweat, dirt and blood that covered her face.

'_I'm sorry_,' she mouthed delicately to her younger brother, who had a terrified look on his face and tears streaming down his cheeks.

Daniel shook his head in disbelief; what was Sam doing? She'd get through this, they both would just like they always did. He'd seen her get up time and time again after being knocked down; both tonight and before. They'd been through far worse together, and still they survived.

It was then that he saw the blow that finally took Sam to the floor; it had come from some guy behind her with a baseball bat. The blow was one that made Daniel turn away with a wince, and when he turned back, Sam lay still on the floor.

"Sam! Sammy!" Daniel cried out helplessly, a strong arm holding him back.

That's when he turned to his captor, his eyes wide with fear realising that he was next. He took another look at his sister, and his anguish turned to anger.

"Get off me!" He yelled, his teeth lunging for and biting down hard on the hand that held the knife to his throat. The effect was immediate, and the knife dropped to the floor; the current state of shock that the man had been left in allowed him to wriggle free, grab the knife, and stumble away from the men.

"Another feisty one. This is gonna be fun!" One man cackled as he stood beside his original captor who stood rubbing the teeth marks on his hand.

Daniel wielded the knife out in front of him as he began to back away towards his sister, every so often glancing behind him to check he was going in the right direction. He knew he didn't have a chance against all of them, but at least he would try.

"Don't come any closer!" The young boy warned them, his voice quivering with a slight fear.

"Heh, heh, heh. Listen to the li'l man talk!" One of the men laughed sadistically, swinging his bat dangerously in his hands.

"If you give up now, you'll go quicker than that girl over there," another told him with a vicious grin, his eyes twinkling with delight at the fear and pain he'd caused.

Danny swallowed hard, but shook his head defiantly, holding the knife out in front of him. His feet had found his sisters side, and that's where he stayed, protecting himself and her with every part of his being.

"I guess it's the hard way then," one perp cackled with glee as he pulled back his arm to hand a harsh blow to the nine year old boy.

Danny closed his eyes, his knuckles whitening as his grip on the knife tightened, awaiting the blow that would most likely knock him to the floor with his sister. But it never came. Instead he heard the sounds of yelling and fighting; metal on metal. Daniel forced his eyes open to see a battle quite unlike any he had ever witnessed, in reality or in any of the movies he had seen before.

Four giant green…things, were jumping and flying through the air with a skill that Daniel could only gape at with awe. Although his sister was good, her skills were inferior compared to that of the green ninjas that fought before him. They fought, not only as a team, but as one. It was as if each one of them knew each other strengths and weaknesses so well that they could make up for it. However, each had their own individual fighting style that was so amazing; Daniel had a hard time tearing his eyes away. If it wasn't for his sister lying on the floor, he would've stood there watching for ages.

Turning to his sister, he knelt down, dropping the knife by his side as he stared at the still body of Sam. "Sam," He shook her shoulders gently. "Sammy, please wake up." That's when tears began to roll down his cheeks, and he hoped that if there was a God out there, he would answer his silent prayers.

Still hearing the fight going on behind him, he tried his best to ignore it, watching his sister for any sign of movement what-so-ever. He thought he'd imagined but, but he swear he saw a flicker of Sam's eyelids.

"Sam?" Danny dared to hope.

And his hope was rewarded with the open eyes and groan from his older sister, then, even a small smile as she saw him.

"Hey," Sam croaked as she used the palms of her hands to prop herself up, and winced with pain, using her good hand to hold her head. "I just got my arse handed to me on a silver platter… But you're okay, right?"

Danny was speechless, and just hugged his sister with a smile, sobbing into her shoulder with relief, "I'm fine."

Sam grimaced as her little brother hugged her, crushing her ribs which didn't help her breathing at all, but she didn't say anything because she was just happy he was okay, if not a little shaken up. That was of course, when she noticed the fight going on behind her younger sibling.

"What's going on?" Sam asked, shifting her weight so she could get up, Danny immediately holding her so she could lean on him.

"Some green people jumped in and started to fight," Danny explained with a careful smile.

Sam's sight was still slightly blurred, and she was unable to balance fully, having to lean mostly on her brother. The pain was also far too much, and she knew that even though she was conscious at the moment, it wouldn't last too long. Glancing around for a weapon, she noticed the lead piping that had been used earlier to crack her ribs, and made Danny pick it up for her.

"What are you going to do?" He asked fearfully, not wanting his older sister to aggravate her wounds any more.

"Help," was all she replied with, hobbling with narrowed eyes over to the fight. She noticed at once that a large group had accumulated round one of their green saviours. Glaring with a dangerous grin she limped over, and noticed that while the ninja could take care of himself, he'd left one still conscious.

This particular gang member stood silently, and pulled a gun out of his jacket pocket. Sam didn't wait to find out whether it was loaded or not. Half running, half limping, she made her way over to the perp, holding the lead pipe high over her head. She cried out in rage as she let the lead pipe swing out violently and hit the man squarely in the back of the head. He fell with a loud thud to the floor, his gun falling with him.

Sam watched the blood flow from his head with a dark sense of satisfaction, looking up to the green ninja that she had saved the life of as she dropped the lead pipe. The male whatever he was, stared at her in confusion, but her vision blurred as pain rocketed through her sides and her breath became short and laboured. Gasping, she clutched her chest, but the black that held the corners of her vision took over, and she fell once more into the dark.

Daniel shook his head with worry, running to her sister's side once again. She would over exert herself, that's what she was like. She never took her own health into account when someone else was in danger; namely him.

"Sam! Sam, please wake up. Please don't leave me again," He shook her carefully, his eyes wide with panic and his cheeks wet with fresh tears. "Come on. Please."

With the gang of Purple Dragons defeated, the four green ninjas walked up behind the nine year old boy who knelt by his unconscious sister. They had empathic looks on their faces as they watched the young boy cry.

Daniel noticed that suddenly, the noise of battle had ceased, and he turned to see the four ninjas for the first time in full. They were giant green turtle creatures, each with a different coloured mask and weapon. He glared with worry at what they might do to him and his sister.

"What do you want with us? Who are you?" He asked bravely, his voice quivering as he quickly wiped his tear streaked face with his sleeve.

"It's okay kid, we're 'ere to help," the one in a red mask spoke, his voice gruff but gentle.

"Raph, they're human. We've helped. It's up to the NYPD now," said the blue masked turtle sternly.

That's when Daniel panicked again. Sammy always tried to avoid the cops wherever possible, due to all the questions they would ask about their family and their past. "Please Mr's; you can't call the cops on us. You got' a help my sis'. She's hurt bad… and… and…" That's when he burst into tears again. "I don't know what to do."

The orange clad turtle approached him, and smiled softly, kneeling down and putting a strangely comforting arm around him, "We're going to help you. Climb up. My name's Mikey, by the way. Battle nexus champ and Super hero extraordinaire."

Danny hesitated as the giant turtle, Mikey, told him to get on his shell. Glancing at his sister, he realised that there was no other choice, so climbed upon the turtles back and held tightly onto his shell.

The blue clad turtle sighed in defeat as he watched the young boy climb upon his brothers back, "Raph, get the girl. We're going home."

Daniel watched the turtle in red kneel down to his sister and pick her gently up in his arms without a word being said. He narrowed his eyes in slight suspicion and protective anxiety, but banished those feelings away. They were helping them after all. A thought suddenly occurred to him as they began to sped off into the night.

"Hey, do you guys know the Turtle Titan?" Daniel asked, and was met with three loud groans and an impish grin from the turtle whose back he was currently clinging onto.

"You have no idea, dude," Mikey replied.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/n:** This chapter's going to start with the turtles view on the fight and how they ended up there. Thought I'd tell you all to stop any befuddlement.

I do not own the TMNT. Wish I did though.

_- Failure lies not in falling down. Failure lies in not getting up. –_

Night time patrols. Every time they went out, it would be the same. There would be some punk somewhere deciding that disobeying the law would be fun; that hurting people was a good idea; and that in some rotten world, he would get away with it... Not if Raph could help it. In Raphs world, every dirty rotten lowlife scum got what was coming to them. And in Raphs world, it was him dealing out the punishment.

Unfortunately for Raph, he lived on Earth, in New York to be exact, deep down in the sewer suburbs of the lively city. If he was a human, he would've most likely become a cop or a vigilante like his friend Casey Jones. However, being a teenage mutant ninja turtle, he lacked the ability to wander around in broad daylight without leaving screaming hoards in his wake. Then again, so did Casey most of the time.

Hence the reason why the four turtles were on _night_ time patrol, and not _day_ time patrol. Running over rooftop after rooftop got so cliché after the first, say, fifty or so times. Of course, if it was a different area, Raph might've been the least bit interested by his surroundings. As it happened, they'd taken this route so many times before; the young turtle was almost mechanical in his movements.

Donatello was leading tonight's patrol, and in doing so was of course leading them to an imminent scavenging hunt over in the dump to look for some useful items for the lair. Raph didn't mind the scavenging part, because he'd always find something that he himself found useful. For example, last time he'd found some old motorcycle parts that he'd scrubbed up, fixed, and fiddled with to an extent that made them compatible with the shell cycle. It was the getting there that was the problem. Fearless leader always made them scarper over the rooftops, keeping to the shadows; he said it was good training. Raph didn't mind the shadows, it was the fact that he was following orders from someone who'd pissed off for sixth months just to come back more bossy than ever. Leo had been here merely a month, and already they'd had so many fights, Raph himself had lost count.

The teenage turtle sighed loudly as he shook his thoughts back into order, attempting to concentrate as they made a particularly difficult jump over a set of protective fencing that had been placed on one rooftop. Landing with a soft thud, he continued after his brothers, returning to his own thoughts as they neared the dump. He could even see the mountainous mounds of rubbish now. It was as they neared however, that Raph noticed something didn't feel quite right; well, rather he _heard_ something that wasn't quite right.

There were sounds of rough voices, and pained groans; even the occasional sound of metal on metal. Narrowing his eyes, Raphael sped up past his brethren, ignoring the calls from his older brother, Leonardo, as he neared the edge of the dump to gain a better look. Crouching low to avoid being noticed, he quickly assessed the scene, and didn't like it at all.

Leo shook his head as he neared his younger brother, kneeling beside him as he to watched the scene unfold. He didn't like it either, but knew that it wasn't their fight, and it was best left to the devices of the humans involved. Of course he knew that Raph would not agree with this. His hot-headed sibling would most certainly make it obligatory for them to assist in the brawl.

"So, what's the sitch?" Mikey grinned, as he bounced to a halt beside his red clad brother, his eyes scanning the fight that spanned out in the dump below.

A young girl, no older than themselves by the looks of it, was in the middle of a rough looking bunch of Purple Dragons, but it didn't look like she was having any trouble with them all. She had skills of a trained warrior, and was knocking them down left, right and centre. Mikey couldn't help but crack a grin at this. However, his grin faded as his gaze travelled to an old beaten up car, and a young figure sheltering behind it. This young male continued to peek over the bonnet to check on the fight, and Mikey knew it was only a matter of time before he was found.

Mikey hated it when he was right, and winced as the boy was dragged out from his hiding place. This was when the fight began to favour the Purple Dragons.

He heard the young girl cry out in anguish as the boy was then held to knife point, and a large deadly looking pipe crashed into her chest. It was at this point that Mikey came aware his brothers sai's were out and twirling menacingly in his hands.

"Dat ain't right," Raphael growled, ready to make his jump down to the dump floor. "I think it's time we evened the odds."

Mikey glanced to Donatello as Raph said this, and he saw the same fire burning in his eyes that he felt deep inside of him. They both agreed with Raph. They wanted to help; to fight; to save the innocence. But they knew Leo wasn't about to let them 'endanger the family'. As if on cue, their eldest brother spoke up.

"Raph, it's not our fight! We stay put and…" Leo began, a restraining hand holding onto his brother's shoulder in an attempt to pressure his point.

"And what, Leo! Just let them beat the living shit out'a an innocent girl! Even I thought you 'ad more _honour_ then that," Raph growled dangerously, shaking his brother's hand off his shoulder moodily. "You're always on about honour, and now you're just gonna let this happen!"

At that, all four turtles looked down at the scene before them to see the teenage girl stand up after a particularly serious blow, putting all her weight onto one leg and looking at her little brother in despair. That was when a blow was taken to her head that took her squarely to the floor; and this time she didn't get up.

Mikey watched what the young boy did then with a swelling empathic admiration in his chest. He knew what it was like to watch someone you love go down in a fight, and not be able to do anything about it. It was when the Purple Dragons began to advance on the boy as he stood protecting his older sister that the young turtle could stand no more.

Leo was prepared to hold Raph back, but wasn't expecting it when their youngest sibling leapt down with a fierce anger in his eyes Leo had never seen before; not in Mikey at any rate. The elder turtle couldn't help but admire Mikeys spirit. Looking to his other brothers, Leo nodded reluctantly and jumped after the youngest turtle, his katana unsheathed before he even hit the ground.

The second eldest hadn't waited for leader's orders, but somehow had managed to jump down with his brother, landing side by side with Leo while his sai immediately began to fly at the perps that had noticed them. He saw from the corner of his eyes, his older brother knock one guy to the ground that threatened his family. For the first time in a while, Raph turned to his older brother and nodded with a certain amount of respect that Leo returned equally.

Then the real fun began, and bodies took to flying everywhere; feet shifted, and weapons clashed. Raph was saved the trouble of bandaging up his arm at a later point by Donatello more times than one; his brothers bo staff swinging expertly around the gang members and knocking his fair share to the floor.

Michelangelo was having equal luck fighting his battle, the young turtle's chucks spinning wildly around the battle field as he used his agility to wear out his opponents. Raph swore that more than once, he heard the young turtle crack a few skulls with his nun chucks; and had to double check to see if he was right or not.

Raph didn't even need to check up on Leo, he knew how well his older brother would be fairing in such an easy fight. Besides, he needed to concentrate on his own battle now. Several of the goons had decided that surrounding him would be a good idea, and he grinned as he twirled his sai's in his hands tauntingly; how wrong they were. The blades flashed through the air with such deadly speed and accuracy, the Purple Dragon scum didn't even have time to blink as they fell to the floor with loud thuds.

"Raph! Behind you!" Leo's voice rang out warningly from his own circle of Purple Dragons, obviously unable to get away quick enough to help his younger brother.

Turning quickly, the young turtle was faced with a bruised and battered male holding a rather sinister looking gun in his hand. It looked loaded. Raph barely had time to react before a piece of lead piping came out of nowhere and crashed around the head of his enemy. The teenage turtle's eyes widened as he watched the gun fall to the floor, and the perp follow suit soon after. Bringing his eyes up to greet his saviour, he was surprised when they met that of the teenage girl that he'd watch beat the crap out of the Purple Dragons earlier. She stood quite still for a moment, the lead pipe held ominously in her hands. Raph watched; his mouth suddenly dry as the teen fell to the floor, the young boy he'd seen protecting her immediately running to her side. It was only then that he noticed that the battle field had gone silent. He turned to watch his brothers walk over to join them, all eyes suddenly moving to rest upon the beaten pair that rested on the floor in front of them.

The young boy then turned to them, cheeks streaked with tears, voice quivering, but a brave light in his eyes that added some threat to his words, "What do you want with us? Who are you?"

"It's okay kid, we're 'ere to help," Raph said softly as he once again found his voice, placing his sais back into his belt.

"Raph, they're human. We've helped. It's up to the NYPD now," Leo's voice rang out annoyingly, a stern undercurrent telling Raph to back away this instant.

The red clad turtle turned to his older brother with a glare, but before he could retort, the boy spoke up to ask for assistance; "Please Mr's; you can't call the cops on us. You got' a help my sis'. She's hurt bad… and… and…" Raph watched the tears flow fresh down the young boys cheeks, shooting a glare at Leo. "I don't know what to do."

The youngest of the turtles walked over to the young boy, and knelt beside him, offering a comforting smile. "We're going to help you. Climb up. My name's Mikey, by the way. Battle nexus champ and Super hero extraordinaire," he said, offering a green three fingered hand to help him onto his shell.

Leo watched Raph restrain himself from hitting Michelangelo over the head as he mentioned the battle nexus tournament, and then turned to Donatello for some advice on the matter. His brother just nodded in encouragement, as if to say 'you know it's the right thing to do'. However much Leo may not have liked it, the turtle knew that his brothers were right, and if he didn't agree he would never hear the end of it. Sighing, he gave in, "Raph, get the girl. We're going home."

Raph turned to his older brother for a moment, and almost let a respectful smile flicker onto his lips. Almost. Then, turning to the young girl, he bent down and picked her gently up in his arms, cradling her like he would a child. This girl had saved his life, now he was going to return the favour. His eyes slowly ran down her body, assessing the cuts and bruises across her skin; her ribs certainly jutted out at a bad angle; a couple of fingers on her left hand looked similar, and she would definitely not be using her right knee for a while. There was also something strangely familiar about her features. Her short dark hair was tangled and filthy, and her clothes were at some places shredded beyond repair. Her eyes and her skin reminded Raphael of the Japanese, so he guess she was of oriental descent. Glancing at the young boy, he had similar discerning features, and guessed that the two humans must be related in some way. Yet, he couldn't quite place the familiarity he felt with the teen.

Whoever she was, this girl had definitely taken one hell of a beating, concluded the teenage turtle. Looking up, he noticed his most intelligent brother at his side, also seemingly assessing her wounds.

"Try to be as gentle as possible, Raph. These look bad, and we don't want to aggravate them anymore," Donny stated sternly, waiting until he received an understanding nod off his older brother before going to Mikey and the young boy.

Once Donatello was satisfied, the four brothers set off at a steady pace over the rooftops towards a nearby manhole covering, a conversation being started by the child that clung affectionately to Mikey's shell.

"Hey, do you guys know the Turtle Titan?" His voice asked eagerly.

The three non-superhero brothers glanced at each other and groaned exasperatedly, as their youngest sibling began a tirade on his many adventures and escapades as the turtle titan; speaking in third person for the better part of the time. Raph almost wished he had a third arm to smack his brother upside the head.

* * *

"You guys live in a sewer?" Danny wrinkled his nose, continuing to hold on tightly to Mikeys shell as they made their way through the underground tunnels of the New York sewage system.

"Yeah, home sweet sewer," Raph answered with a gruff grin, as he made his way carefully next to his youngest brother, the teenage girl still held protectively in his arms.

Over the course of their journey, the young boy; whose name the turtles learnt was Daniel, better known as Danny to his friends, had told them of him and his sister, Samantha. The two lived together in a small apartment not far from where the turtle's lair was based, and they lived alone. Their parents had died when Danny was only three, and from up until two years previously, they'd lived with their Grandfather. The young boy's eyes lit up with happiness as he remembered some of the times they'd spent together to the four brothers. Then, his Grandfather had died due to sickness and old age. At this, the nine year olds eyes glazed with tears which he banished with a quick wipe of his sleeve. Danny also told them of his older brother, Ben, who'd gone mad with grief and guilt after his Grandfathers demise, and left them a year and a half ago. They hadn't heard from him since; no phone call, no letters, nothing. Apparently, Sam and Ben had always fought, especially after their Grandfather passed away, and after one particularly bad fight, Ben had packed up his stuff and just left them.

Raph looked down to the girl he held in his arms with a kind of admiration. She'd been on her own with a nine year old boy for over a year, and she hadn't gone crazy. Not only that, but she'd dropped out of high school to get a full time job so that Danny could lead a comfortable, happy life. It was amazing to think of how much she'd gone through and how much she'd given up, yet she still seemed content with her life. He understood now why Danny didn't want to get the cops involved; if he had, then they would've been sure to call social services and that would've meant that the two siblings would have to be split up, even though Samantha was now at an age where she could legally become Danny's guardian.

"Here we are," Donny announced, double checking the tunnels around him before opening the door, holding it open so that Mikey and Raph could get through easily with the people they'd carried from the dump. He followed soon after, leaving Leo to enter last after he'd double, double checked the tunnels for unwanted followers.

Danny's eyes widened in awe as he looked around at the turtle's home. It was nothing like the sewer tunnels he'd been carried through. It was clean, well kept, and had the most amazing entertainment centre he had ever seen in his entire life! "Cool," he said with a growing grin.

"Totally," Michelangelo agreed with a similar grin as he helped Danny off his shell.

"Raph, take Sam to the infirmary, I'll be there right away. I need to grab a few things from my lab first," Donny ordered his older brother before quickly disappearing to his laboratory down the hall.

The red clad turtle nodded, and turned to walk away to the infirmary when a voice made him stop and turn back around.

"My son's please explain what is going on," the elderly rat said sternly as he leant on his walking stick, standing proudly before his three sons, and the young human boy.

"A giant rat…Cool," Danny breathed, staring at Splinter with wide eyes as he shuffled his feet so he stood slightly behind Mikey, his hands reaching out to hold onto the turtle's arm, trying to find reassurance that this old rat was safe.

Mikey looked down at the young boy with a small smile. He'd never had someone do that before, and it made him feel…well, he didn't know for sure, but it sort of felt warm and protective. "Hey, Danny, it's cool. This is our father, and awesome sensei, Master Splinter," Mikey grinned, nudging Danny slightly forward to meet his dad. "Sensei, this is Danny."

The old rat stepped toward the young boy, who swallowed hard but bowed in respect towards the master, "Konnichiwa kooei aru meijin."(1)

Splinter smiled at the young boy, and bowed back in reply, "Konnichiwa osanago."(2)

Mikey gawped at his young friend as he watched the interaction between him and his father, "You never said you knew Japanese. You been holdin' out on me."

"You never asked," Danny shrugged, a sheepish grin growing on his face as he looked towards his shelled companion, who laughed in reply.

That's when Splinter turned to Raphael, his eyes wandering to the female held protectively in his arms, "Why are you still here Raphael. I believe Donatello told you to go to the infirmary with our guest."

Raphael nodded gratefully to his sensei and honoured father before turning and heading quickly to the infirmary, where his younger brother was already waiting for him impatiently.

"I told you to bring her here at once," He scolded Raph, his voice softening almost at once. "Now lay her here. I'm going to have to realign her ribs before I bandage them up. I'm going to need your help."

"You got it Don," Raph replied, already scrubbing up before joining his brother beside Sam. His eyes looked at her still features and slow heaving chest; and he hoped that he would be able to help. "Let's do this."

* * *

Danny watched his sister go with a sad frown, and moved to go after her, but a gentle hand held him back, "It's better if you stay with Mikey. Don's gonna need some quiet to help your sister out." Danny looked up to Leo with teary eyes.

"But I can't leave her! She'd never leave me," Danny cried out in frustration.

As Leo watched Danny, he was reminded so much of his youngest sibling, Michelangelo, that he couldn't help but kneel down and gather Danny in a soft embrace. "She's going to be fine, Danny. You stay with Mikey, he'll show you around, and he might even let you have a go on one of his video games. That sound good?"

Danny felt safe in the older turtle's arms; it was as if his older brother had come back, and when he was released, he wiped his tears away and nodded with a small smile, "Yeah sounds cool."

"Come on, let's go explore the turtle cave," Mikey grinned, motioning for Danny to follow him. "I'll even show you my secret stash of super hero guide books."

"Wow!" Danny grinned, almost bouncing with excitement. "Do you think I could become a super hero, just like you?"

Leo shook his head with a smile as he heard the voices slowly fade away. They were so much alike, it was uncanny. _I guess it's just the young carefree attitude_, Leo thought as he turned to his sensei.

"They are much alike," Splinter smiled knowingly, airing both his and his sons silent revelation. "It will be good for Michelangelo."

"My thoughts exactly master," Leo agreed with a grin.

"However, that's not what I wished to talk to you about my son. I was wondering how the outing went this evening," Splinter said, the old rat raising an eyebrow quizzically towards his eldest son.

Watching his sensei carefully, he knew exactly what he was on about. He wanted to know how Raph had acted, and what went on with himself and his brother. "Better than other times," the teen turtle replied honestly. "He acted more, responsibly. I don't know whether it was the situation, or the fact that he's actually calming down. Most likely the former."

His father nodded slowly in response, "I think your brother made need some more time. Perhaps our new guests may do something to quell his anger."

"We can hope, sensei. We can hope."

* * *

Raph sat in the padded armchair beside the infirmary bed, as it was his turn on watch. The three brother, minus Michelangelo due to the fact that he was looking after Danny, had decided that it was best if one of them was always there in the infirmary to make sure that when Samantha woke up, there was someone there to calm her and explain the situation. Of course, seeing a giant turtle upon waking wasn't the best thing to calm a person's nerves, but it was the best they could do on such short notice.

It had been a whole day since they'd patched Sam up from her battering. It had been a difficult task for Raph and Don, since two of her ribs were somewhat out of place, and there were many cuts and bruises that they had to clean up on the way. They'd bandaged her chest, strapped up her two left fingers, and then put a support bandage on her right knee. Donny even had to stitch up a cut on her right cheek. Raph didn't exactly blame Sam for being asleep for so long; she needed healing time.

Her little brother Danny had been a right trooper. He'd come and see his sister every hour or so, and then he'd go and help around the lair. He even helped Mikey cook dinner the other night. The four brothers already thought of him as part of the family; even Master Splinter had begun to grow attached to the young boy. Raph thought it was mainly due to his uncanny resemblance to Mikey.

The teenage turtle sighed, and rubbed his eyes behind his mask. He hadn't slept since the night that they'd brought her back, and he didn't know why. Maybe it was because she'd saved his life, maybe not. All he knew was he couldn't sleep, not until she'd woken up. Raph leant his elbows on his knees and placed his head in his hands, groaning with exasperation.

And his groan was echoed.

Raph stood up so fast; he almost fell over his chair.

Sam, on the other hand, brought her right arm up to her face, wincing as she felt it stretch her chest. "Purple bloody Dragons," she croaked out weakly, bringing her left hand up to her face. She paused when she attempted to flex her fingers, and felt that she couldn't. Opening her eyes for the first time, she squinted into the light before her sight finally adjusted to see her bandaged left hand. Making a facial expression of pure confusion, she tried to sit up, but gasped with pain. "Christ almighty on a shiny pogo stick," She swore, staying deadly still as she let the pain ebb away.

"One of the goons broke a couple of ya ribs when he smacked ya with a pipe," Raph told her, a small smile adorning his face at her imaginative cursing. "It's best if ya stay still."

At the sound of the voice, Sam turned in surprise. What surprised her more, was who, or better still, what, the voice had come from. That made her start to panic, especially when she looked around and noticed that her brother wasn't with her. "Okay, who or what the hell are you? And what have you done with my bro? Where the hell am I?"

"Woah, woah, slow down. First off, I ain't gonna hurt ya," Raph said, a little irritably, but he knew humans had a hard time dealing with mutant turtles there first time round. "Second, your bro's with my bro, and he's _fine_, which is better than I can say for you."

"Figured that out all by yourself did ya?" Samantha replied sarcastically, her eyes darting around for an escape route. Whatever this thing was, she didn't want to hang around; she'd grab her brother and run.

Raph knew the skittish actions almost at once, and stood in the way of her 'escape', not that she was in any form to make an attempt to run away. "Just slow down and listen will ya!" He growled. "You ain't in no danger! We fixed you up for fucks sake." He decided that maybe the angry Raph wasn't the best approach. "Just listen. I'm a mutant turtle, and I live with my three other brothers. In case you're wonderin', yeah, they're giant turtles too."

Sam found all this rather a lot to take in, and narrowed her eyes in suspicion at the giant turtle before her, "I'm dead aren't I. Or I've got to be on some sort'a drug. This has got to be a dream…"

The turtle stood before the teenage girl, and folded his arms, "Poke your chest. Then, when you feel pain, you'll know it ain't a dream. It's real, so the sooner you start believin' n calm down, the better."

_Oh great, I got the smart arse_, Sam rolled her eyes inwardly. "Listen, I want to thank you for what you did, but I don't want to trouble you anymore. I'll just get my bro, and disappear." _The_ _sooner that happens, the sooner I can return to reality_, she thought.

Raph raised his eyebrow…well, kind of, and stared at the young woman in disbelief, "You have two broken ribs, two broken fingers; a fucked knee and a stitch in you're cheek. If you think you're goin' _anywhere_, you got'anuva thing coming."

She was being told off by a giant turtle. It was the single weirdest experience of her life. "This is mad. I'm mad. I'm talking to a giant turtle," she said to herself, still staring at Raph.

"You know, you kinda do look mad talkin' to youself," Raph teased with a roll of his eyes.

"Says the giant turtle," Sam retorted. Okay, so he was real. He was a real giant turtle. As real as can be. And he was standing there right in front of her. "Okay, say, I believe all this, who are you? And how'd I end up here?"

"My name's Raphael. Me and my bros brought you here after you got the shit kicked out'a ya the other night. Danny asked us to help," Raph replied, watching the teen carefully as he spoke.

"Yeah, you don't have to remind me," Sam scowled, touching her cheek gingerly as memories of the fight flooded back to her. "Where is Danny anyway?"

"I'll go get him. I got'a get Don anyway. He said as soon as you wake up, he wants to check you over," Raph told her, already moving to the infirmary door where he stood and leant out round the corner. "HEY, GUYS! SAMS AWAKE!"

Sam flinched, and groaned aloud, glaring at the giant turtle, "Tactful. Real tactful. Thanks for that." It was then she heard the sound of running feet, and a voice telling her brother to slow down before he hurts himself. Sam couldn't help but smile.

"Sam? Sammy!" Danny cried out as he skidded past Raphael, almost knocking the turtle down in his haste, and jumped onto his sister with open arms, holding her warmly, grinning from ear to ear.

Sam felt the breath get knocked out of her as she was attacked with love by her little brother, but couldn't help letting out a strangled laugh. She didn't bother to hide a small flow of tears that fell down her cheeks as she cradled her brother softly in her arms, placing a kiss on the top of his head, "Hey Danny. I missed you too."

"It's a Kodak moment," Mikey grinned, wiping a fake tear from his eye as he watched the loving scene from the doorway, where he and the rest of his family now stood. This, of course, earned him a smack upside the head from Raph. "Ow!"

"Danny, I think you're sis needs to breath," Donny smirked from the doorway, as he stepped towards the small family reunion. "And I need to make sure her wounds are still okay."

That was when Danny pulled away from his sister, and stood there smiling up at her from the side of the bed. "Meet the guys! They saved us from that gang. This is Donatello, Michelangelo, Leonardo, and you've met Raphael."

Each turtle waved in turn, except Leo who decided to bow, and Donny who mumbled a hello from where he was inspecting Sam's knee. "I feel a theme occurring," she muttered, gaping at them all. It was all rather surreal. She then yelped in shock at the sudden giant rat in the doorway.

"You didn't tell her about Master Splinter, did you Raphie boy?" Mikey tutted, waggling his finger teasingly at his brother who growled threateningly in reply.

"Oh, and this is Master Splinter. He's awesome, you'll love him," Danny grinned, jumping to sit on the side of Sam's bed.

His older sister just stared at him with a gaping mouth, "I'm not dreaming, am I."

"Nope. It's so cool isn't it!" Danny laughed jubilantly, which made Sam crack a smile too.

Donny stood up at that moment, and smiled at Sammy, "You're wounds are fine, and healing nicely. I'm afraid I don't want to let you leave until at least you're ribs are fully healed and back in place. So…"

"That means you're stuck with us for a while! Brilliant!" Mikey grinned, bounding over to the teenage girl and giving Danny a jovial high-five.

Sam laughed as she looked at each of the turtles in turn, and then to their sensei, "Thank you. For everything. And I'm sorry for wigging out earlier Raph." She smiled sheepishly at the giant turtle clad in red.

"Who wouldn't if they saw a giant turtle," Raph replied, a small smirk on his face.

"Especially one with a face like his," Mikey teased with a grin.

"You'll be regretting that later, laughing boy," Raph growled, glaring at his younger brother who so easily riled him up.

"Hey, hey, hey! None of that in front of my patient," Donatello scolded them with a small smile as he finally finished checking Sam's wounds. "We're making up the spare room for you… hope it's not to sudden, all this being as it is."

"No, no. I'm not admitting it's not weird meeting a family of giant mutated animals, but Danny likes you, and I trust his judgement," Sam smirked, ruffling the hair of her little brother affectionately. "Listen, are you sure you guys want us here. I mean, I don't want to put you all too anymore trouble than you've already been to…"

"Woah, stop there. We said you's are staying, and that's that," Raph answered for all of them, which was a little surprising to say the least. "Besides, I don't think Danny wants to leave."

At this, Sam turned to her brother's pleading puppy-dog eyes, and raised an eyebrow of amusement, "Fine. But only if it's okay with you guys."

"You know, if you keep sayin' that, I'm gonna knock you back into unconsciousness," Raph threatened with a teasing smile.

The other turtles held there breath at their brother's violent sense of humour, but let out relieved chuckles as Sam laughed. "Yeah, I'd like to see you try. I could take you even if I do have a couple of broken ribs, a busted knee, and two broken fingers."

"Ooo, I doubt that. But I ain't one for beating up a cripple; especially a girl," Raph retorted.

"Cripple? Excuse me for getting beaten up, Mr Hot head," Sam narrowed her eyes at the turtle mischievously, swinging her legs to hang over the side of the bed. "As for the girl part, we'll see how you fair once I'm better."

"And I think that's where we stop the fighting talk!" Leo interrupted before Raphael had the chance to retort once again. _Master Splinter may be right_, the eldest turtle thought, _maybe this will be good for Raph_. "Until I here the okay from Don, I want no fighting from you!"

"And Raphael, you are not to encourage her in this matter. Our guest needs rest, and time to heal," Splinter scolded his second eldest softly. Then, turning to Samantha, a small smile appeared on his face, "I am glad you have chosen to stay Miss Samantha. It appears you have already had a big impact on my sons, as has your brother."

"The pleasures mine, meijin(3)," Sam replied, a soft flush growing on her cheeks at being addressed in such a warm manner.

"You know Japanese too!" Mikey exclaimed, rounding on the teen rather suddenly.

"Well, yeah, my father was Japanese," Sam explained, raising a quizzical eyebrow at the turtle. "As was my Grandfather, obviously, being my father's father. My mom was American though."

"Does that explain your skills? Was you're Grandfather a ninjitsu master also?" Leonardo asked eagerly, his quest for knowledge on the ancient art overpowering his self control at that moment.

"Not of the highest class, but yeah, I guess you could call him that," Sam replied, trying to hide a small smile at Leo's eagerness. She couldn't help but find it just a little cute. "He taught us all he could before he passed away. I'm surprised Danny didn't fill you in, as he obviously told you everything else."

Her younger brother immediately found his innocent grin and invisible halo, which Sam just rolled her eyes at. Danny had the uncanny ability to always smile and get away with everything. Of course, he did annoy the hell out of her at points, but that's what younger siblings were born to do.

It was only then that she realised Donatello had been speaking the whole time, but not to her or the others. He was speaking into what Sam guessed was some sort of cell phone, though it didn't look much like any cell phone she'd ever seen in her life. When he hung up and turned to meet her curious gaze, the turtle grinned with pride and showed her the device.

"I call it a shell cell. It's like a cell phone, only with a few upgrades I added myself," the enthusiastic turtle told her. "I was just calling a couple of our other human friends to come down and meet you. They could take you back topside to gather a few belongings from your apartment later on. Plus, it helps to know a couple of other humans who also know about us and aren't obsessed with trying to dissect us. They'll be here in no time, since they were together anyway."

"Telling her about the whole dissecting thing is really gonna help convince her to stay, Don," Raph raised his eyebrow incredulously at his younger bro, who just shrugged sheepishly in reply.

Sam chuckled, and turning to Master Splinter, she asked, "Are they always like this?"

"You have no idea," the old rat replied with a wizened grin. "This is actually a good day." This just made Sam laugh more.

The turtles were saved the trouble of defending themselves at a rather large crash; several swear words in loud exclamation, and a stern scolding from a female voice. Raph cracked a grin as soon as he heard this, obviously already deciding who it would be, "I think they're here. I'll go get them… HEY GUYS! WE'RE IN THE INFIRMARY!"

Leo winced, and then rubbed his ear drum delicately, "Do you have to do that right in my ear?"

"Yeah," His brother replied nonchalantly, causing Leo to roll his eyes.

"So, where are your new guests," a female asked as she rounded the corner of the infirmary and entered. Sam liked the look of her; she had neat red hair and a warm smile. It seemed Danny did also by the large wave he directed at her when she entered.

"Time for more introductions," Don grinned. "This is April O'Neil. April, this is Samantha and Danny. April was our first human friend. She reacted the same way you did by my guesses when she first met us."

"What? Scream and try and convince yourself it's all a dream?" Sam raised an eyebrow towards the older female with a small smile.

April laughed warmly and nodded, "Yeah. I almost had a heart attack when I saw Master Splinter too." At this both girls laughed.

"You do have quite the effect on the ladies Sensei," Mikey grinned, earning him another smack up the head from Raph. "Ow!"

"Aw crud, April, why the hell did you wander off? You know I can never find my way round this place," a deep male voice whined from the doorway as he rubbed a large bump on his head, signalling the arrival of their second closest human companion.

Raph grinned, and smacked his friend round the shoulder, "And this bone head is…"

"Uncle Casey?" Sam gawked.

"Yeah, wha… Sammy?" Casey gawked back, their expressions of pure surprise so alike Raph had to do a double take.

* * *

(1) Hello honourable Master 

(2) Hello little one

(3) Master (a skilled person)

A/n: Hope you liked it. Kind of just, introducing the characters to one another at the moment and working up the background story for the OC's, as you can see, lol. Please R + R!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/n:** Updates will be fewer and farther between for a while until I get into the swing of things at my new site of education, lol.

Unfortunately, I do not own the TMNT. That honour is Eastman + Lairds/ Mirages.

_- Our eyes are placed in front because it is more important to look ahead than to look back_ -

"Woah, slow down here. Let me get this straight," Mikey raised an eyebrow. "Casey- the- utterly- irresponsible- Jones, is your Uncle? How did that happen?"

"We'll tell you about the Birds and the bees when you're older Mike," Donatello told him with a small hint of a smile. However, he was as equally perplexed about this whole matter as his younger brother seemed to be. The young turtle needed some answers, and wanted them now.

"Sam's my older cousins kid, along with Danny, and Ben," Casey explained quickly, still a look of confusion plastered across his face. "What I don't get is- what the hell are you doing here Sammy? I haven't heard from ya for a year. And why the hell are you in bandages!"

Everyone looked to the teenage girl at this point, and Sam suddenly began to get very hot, as if someone had turned a giant spotlight on her and no matter where she ran, it would always follow. It was an endless cycle with her; get out of one mess, and another soon presents itself. She just hoped someone would shoot her; or she'd shrink so small that everyone would forget about her presence. Awaiting some miracle to get her out of this situation, she stayed silent, her eyes flicking around the room, looking for said miracle. When one didn't present itself however, she sighed in defeat. Her luck had run out, had it even been there to begin with.

"Long time no see," She began, the essence of a smile trying to creep onto her face as her mouth suddenly went very dry. Still praying for a distraction, she continued. "I um, got into a fight the other night with some guys. Kind'a got a _bit_ pummelled. The guys saved us, and fixed me up. End of story."

"Yeah, when I see those Purple Dragons again, I'm going to give them a _hah_, and a _hi-yah, _and kick their ugly butts from here to Timbuck two," Danny grinned, punching and kicking the air in a demonstration before he caught the death glare his sister had been sending him, stopping his performance immediately.

"Purple Dragons? That lowlife scum did this to you!" Casey's voice was on the rise all through his sentence, and the people in his immediate range slowly backed away.

"It's all right Casey, we dealt with them," Leo said, attempting to stop his friend from blowing the veins in his head. "Besides, Sam and Danny are fine, and that's all that really matters."

The teen shot the turtle in blue a thankful glance, "Listen, Uncle C, it's cool. I wasn't hurt too bad." At this, Donatello gave Sam a reprimanding look, which she tried her best to ignore.

"How is it cool! You got the snot kicked out'a ya, and you think that's okay!" Casey almost yelled; his eyes ablaze. "You'se could'a got yourself killed and I would'nt 'ave been none the wiser! With your parents and your grandpa gone, what the hell did you think you were gonna do? Jesus Sammy, I thought you had more sense to keep in touch and _call_ when things got bad. I ain't heard from ya in a year and now, I find ya wrapped in bandages…"

"Casey! Shutup for a second!" Raphael snapped, his attitude the only thing that could currently get Casey to calm down other than a hard slap across the face. "Sam's been through loads, and you giving her the third degree ain't gonna help matters! She got the shit kicked out'a her that night, but she _still_ managed to save my shell when it mattered! And hell, she didn't even _know_ me!"

Sam swallowed hard as she watched her Uncle's rage grow. Her eyes dropped to her hands where she began to fiddle idly with her bandage when Raph began to stand up for her. It was the first time either of them had mentioned what had happened in the dump, but she'd leave that for later. All she could do at the moment was hear the disappointment covering her Uncles words; she knew she had failed; she knew that she should've done better. Hell, she knew she _could've_ done better! Her eyes narrowed as her fists clenched and her own temper began to grow; her frustration at herself for being such a weakling and not even being able to protect her younger brother.

"I know I failed!" She cried out over the top of the two arguing males, making them stop and turn to her. She found herself suddenly at centre stage once more. "I know I screwed up big time, all right! I should've handled things better, but I didn't. Big bloody surprise! I'm not Ben; I'm not fucking perfect. And look where it's got me, eh? I'm a nobody- a failure! I couldn't even protect Danny when it mattered. I couldn't even save my own family from falling to pieces…"

This was the first time in a long while that Danny had seen his sister like this, and it scared him. She was usually so strong, so confident that Danny believed she could do anything in the world. However, he always knew that some part of her was hiding; that there was something she wasn't telling him; that she didn't show the world. Sometimes, he would hear her crying at night, and would go to comfort her. Then they would sit and cry together until they fell asleep in each others arms. He liked those nights, because those were the nights where he would fall asleep comfortable, knowing that his sister felt the same way that he did. It made her seem more human, and less… super-human. Yet, here she was, breaking down in front of him, showing the whole world just how human she could be. It worried him so much, that he shuffled to Michelangelo, and clung to the side of the turtles shell looking for comfort, which he received in the form of an arm around his shoulder.

Leo and Raph looked at each other and frowned. In her, they each saw parts of themselves. The anguish at not being able to protect her family, Leo could relate to wholly; whereas Raph knew how it felt to be in the shadow of an older sibling. Each also knew how the other felt, and looked away uncomfortably.

Donatello stared at the teenage girl, and brought her into a hesitant embrace, shushing her fears and speaking words of comfort that his brothers usually spoke, "You did all you could do. You did your best and no one expects more than that, because that's all you can do. Everyone has their own strengths, and you've shown yours in every way possible. You brought up your younger brother all by yourself this past year. I knew I would never be able to do that, even though according to my bros I'm a genius. But you don't have to be afraid to ask for help, because it's always here for you. Casey's just upset that he might've lost you, that's all."

Samantha tensed up at the turtles embrace, and was about to fight it off when the tears came. She realised then that she wanted to be held; to be comforted; to be told that everything was going to be okay once more. So she relaxed slowly into the reptiles arms, and laid her head on his plastron, crying out her fears.

The group all stared at the young teen, who suddenly seemed to look a lot younger as she cried into Donatello's arms, with a sense of empathic sympathy. There was no one in that room that hadn't gone through their fair share of hard ships over the years. This being the case, Casey suddenly felt like a complete idiot; he'd gone into a complete tirade, when he'd done the same thing when he was younger. The forlorn look on his face added to the sheepish shuffle of his feet as he tried to think of something to say broke the silence. He brought his gaze up to meet Aprils, looking for some help. The red head just placed a soft hand on his arm and flashed him an encouraging smile, her confidence in him giving him the strength to find the right words.

"Sam," He said softly as he walked towards the teenage girl who turned to him at the sound of her name. "Listen, I'm sorry I lost it. It's just, I can't get the thought through my head that I might'a… you know, lost ya. I mean, what kind'a Uncle am I to let you go get hurt like that… and I just, want you to know that I'm here for ya. Just like ya Ma' was. I ain't going nowhere."

"My dear, you have a new family now," Master Splinter announced quietly, as he too walked towards Sam to stand beside Casey, a wizened understanding smile on his face. You couldn't really bring up four turtles and not become as understanding as he was. "Do not bear the worlds problems alone, when we are here to help."

"Plus, we owe you one for saving Raphie. God knows how happy we might've been with him out of the picture. Would've been a disaster," Mikey teased, trying to get a smile out of Sam and succeeding, but also landing himself with another smack upside the head. "Ow! Why do feel the need to hurt me? I am after all, you're younger, much more handsome and talented counter part. Ow!" The youngest turtle rubbed the back of his head, the mischievous glint in his eye never leaving.

"Makes me feel better," The older turtle answered, folding his arms across his chest.

"Of course, the question is, do you want to be part of such an odd family?" Donatello raised an eyebrow, a small toying smile on his face as he watched his younger brother hum the Addams family theme tune and once more get smacked upside the head.

"Aw, come on Sammy. Say yes, please, please, please, please, please!" Danny pleaded, running through Mikeys arm and to his sister's bedside now that she had calmed down. "They're not all that bad."

"I think I'll take that as a compliment," Mikey grinned. "Come on Sam, please, please, please, please, please!" The youngest turtle mimicked Danny, fluttering his eyelashes innocently.

"I've known you guys for only a couple of hours, and you're already proposing. Could at least buy a girl some flowers first," Sam finally replied when she could get a word in edgeways, her tears being wiped away unceremoniously by a hankie kindly handed to her from April.

"What am I? Vegetarian chopped liver?(1)" Casey raised an eyebrow, letting a small smile at the return of his nieces humour adorn his lips.

"Nah, you ain't _that_ bad Uncle C," the teenager replied, a flicker of a smile on her lips as she was released from Donatellos arms, just to be encased in her Uncle's; an embrace that she gladly returned.

"Yay! One big happy family! Group hug!" Mikey grinned, holding out his arms, only to be met with silence and a couple of odd looks. "Well, excuse me for being sensitive. A turtle has feelings too ya know!" Huffing, he folded his arms grumpily.

Sam giggled, "Come here Mikey." She brought the turtle into a hug when he'd bounced over, the similarities between him and her own younger brother amazing her. It was then that she felt a pair of smaller arms sliding around her left side, so she freed one arm to put round what she guessed was Danny, who, like Mikey, also seemed to be feeling a bit left out. Looking to Raph and Leo, she motioned at the two that now clung to her sides with a quizzical brow. Both brothers just shrugged knowingly in reply.

"Um, guys, a little space?" She chuckled as the two youngest siblings retracted themselves and stood either side of her bed. It was then that a yawn fell to her lips, and Sam realised how tired she was. All this excitement didn't do her any good.

"And that would be my cue as Doctor, to shush everyone out of the room so my patient can get a little rest," Donatello shooed, taking the yawn as a sign that it was best everyone parted their separate ways. "Out you go!"

"We'll be back tomorrow to check up on you, and see if you want some help getting stuff from your apartment," April told her quickly, a warm smile and a wave signalling her exit.

"By we, that means me n April," Casey confirmed with a smile that April just rolled her eyes at. "Take care kiddo, got that?"

"Yeah, yeah," She smiled back, watching the two human adults leave. "Um, Uncle Casey?"

"Yeah Sam?" He asked, swinging himself back round the doorway.

"You hot on her?" Sam asked with a grin, which he just glared at good naturedly and left without a word which made the turtles chuckle.

"Come on Danny, we've got to beat boss number two on Crash force nebula!" Mikey announced, taking the fact everyone was leaving that it was his time to go. "Race ya to the couch!"

"You're not winning this time!" Danny laughed, already speeding off after the turtle, only stopping at the doorway for a moment to tell his sister he'd be back later.

"I think we've found Mikeys doppelganger," Donny supposed thoughtfully, airing everyone's thoughts at that precise moment with an impish grin.

"I think you are right my son," Master Splinter agreed with a nod. "I don't know whether this is a good or bad omen." At this, the aged rat chuckled, knowing his sons boisterous behaviour was enough to handle at the best of times. "Sleep well Miss Jones. I'll leave you now in the capable hands on my sons, who all have training in one hour."

"Thank you sensei," Sam replied, stopping a chuckle from escaping her lips at the sudden exasperated expressions on Donny and Raphs faces.

Donatello sighed, his shoulders slumping at the thought of evening training when he was already quite tired from looking after Sam. No rest for the ninja, especially for one who spends half his time fiddling with electronics. "Just call if you need anything, sound echoes amazingly well around this lair," He told her with a small accusing glance at Raphael. At this he left with a grin, Leo not two steps behind him.

"Come on Raph, let her get some rest," the eldest turtle said, one hand holding the doorway open as instruction for his brother to leave with him.

"I'll be out in a sec. I just wanna talk to Sam for a minute," Raph said, watching his brother's incensed stare. They stood like this for a moment, and Sam feared a confrontation, before Leo nodded unwillingly and backed away, giving Sam a friendly smile as he left.

After returning Leos smile, she turned to the red clad turtle and raised an eyebrow inquisitively. She said nothing, as if encouraging him to speak, which in the end he did.

"I just wanted to, ya know, say thanks for savin' my shell back at the dump n all," Raph said a bit awkwardly, his fingers toying with the hilt of his Sai, which he always seemed to do when he was nervous or irritated.

Sam couldn't help but let a smile cross her face as she swung her legs back onto the bed, wincing slightly when her right knee decided to twinge when she bent it. _Bless him._ "Least I could do after you jumped to the rescue," she replied. "Besides, couldn't let you guys have all the fun."

The turtle watched her curiously, letting a smile adorn his lips at her last statement. "Yeah, well, next time be a bit more careful and I won't have to come n save your sorry arse."

At this Sam laughed, and shook her head in disbelief at the turtle, using her arms to gently lower herself back onto the bed, the pillows propping her up comfortably. "Well, if the perks are this good, I won't be able to help myself."

"Ha, ha, ha," Raph replied sarcastically, a smirk telling Sam the turtle was still in good humour. "I'll leave ya to get some rest before Doctor Donatello comes back with a vengeance." Wandering to the door, he took another glance back and watched the teen close her eyes, head snuggled into a pillow, and turned so that she was leaning more on her left side. Making careful sure that he opened the door silently, the turtles left.

"Hey, Raph?" Sam called out before he closed the door.

"Yeah?" Peering back round the door, the turtle raised an eyebrow.

"Thank you," her voice replied softly from the bed, her eyes still closed as exhaustion swept over her in an unforgiving wave.

The turtle blinked in surprise, before smiling in understanding. He stood at the door for a couple of moments after, just watching the teenage girl fall into a humble sleep before silently closing the door and walking away.

* * *

Casey sat silently on the worn couch that sat in the turtle's lair watching his youngest nephew play with Mikey on the games console, his thoughts focused on trying to put together that day's events and new information, not really watching what was going on in the screen in front of him. It was a lot for him to handle, seeing as he wasn't easily the most sensitive of guys. The turtle's and their sensei had asked him to stick around for a while afterwards so that they could try and sort Sam and Danny's background out a bit more. Casey knew that they just wanted to know how they were related to him. He didn't blame them really. 

The older male was thankful that April had decided to stay with him. He needed her by his side, and he didn't know why. It was just comforting to have someone there that knew him, and knew how to handle his moods. Raph was there, true enough, but he figured he needed someone who understood him a bit more emotionally.

"Casey, could you come to the kitchen?" Leo asked him politely, not wanting to discuss the matters in front of Danny. Mikey he could tell later if his youngest sibling desperately wanted to know.

Knowing that this was the time to spill the beans, Casey sighed and stood, wandering to the kitchen with April in tow. Taking the seat and the beer that was offered to him, he looked at his friends. "Hey, where's Raph?"

"He just wanted to talk to Sam, he'll be here in a minute," the eldest turtle said decisively. And if he wasn't here in a minute, than Leo would go and get him. He didn't want Raph keeping Sam up longer than was necessary; she needed time to rest and heal. _Hopefully_, he thought_, even Raph should know that_.

As if knowing someone was talking about him, the turtle they had been speaking of walked through the kitchen door and took a seat himself, "Aw, you guys waited."

"Party ain't complete with out you Raph," Casey smirked, punching the turtle affectionately on the shoulder.

"Nor you as it seems Mr Jones," Splinter spoke, raising an inquisitive eyebrow towards the human male. "How is it exactly that you are related to Samantha and Daniel?"

"Took the question right off my tongue Sensei," Donny stated, watching Casey for an answer.

The inevitable had come to pass, Casey hated long winded explanations, they hurt his head. So, taking a sip of his beer to quell his thoughts, he began, "My older cousin… well, a lot older, married a Japanese bloke by the name of Takuma Kagemori. Her name was Emily; she was a true class cuz. She taught me how to play hockey," He grinned at the memories before continuing, "Anyways, Takuma had come over here with his Dad, Kenji, to further some family business. I dunno. He met Emmie, they fell in love, n they got married. The result bein' Ben, Samantha, and Danny. They each have Japanese names their father gave em to, something to do will family honour; Bens was Takumi, Sams was Hoshi, and Danny's was Ryou…"

"Artisan, star, and refreshing dreamer," Master Splinter thought aloud, translating the names to the best of his ability. "Suitable names I am guessing."

"Now I know what they mean, yeah, sure are," Casey shrugged indifferently, much to the amusement of Raph and annoyance of Leonardo. "What I do know is they use 'em as middle names. Mainly dey were for when they spent summer's over in Japan with the Kagemori lot. But the last summer they spent there, Emmie n the kids flew home a month early. It was the year before they died, so Danny would've only been two. There had been some major trouble apparently, they didn't tell me much about it. I'd tried askin' Ben when he was a bit older, but he didn't tell me nothing either."

The large male paused at that point, the beer bottle rolling idly in his hands as he eyes unseeingly watched the brown liquid swirl in the base. Casey then took a large last gulp, and sighing sadly, he went on, "The next year, just afta Danny's third birthday, Emmie and Takuma got into a real bad crash. Never had a chance, what with the train goin' at the speed it was. Kinda suspicious really seeing as how Emmie was the only one dat drove, but Takuma was found in the driver's seat. It hit Ben and Sam hard. They did everythin' after that to protect Danny, s'why he's so carefree n all, 'cause he had his big siblin's to take away the worry n spoil 'im rotten. Their Grandpa Kenji took care of em after that. He was a good bloke, loved those kids to bits."

Silence reigned after Casey's explanation, each turtles mind burning with random thoughts and theories; questions and emotions. It hurt them to hear the tale of woe from Casey. It certainly put a lot into perspective on why Sam was so overprotective of Daniel, and why she never wanted to talk about Ben. After all, they'd been through so much, and he just left her and Danny to go god knows where.

"And I thought we'd had it rough," Raph murmured quietly, his beer suddenly loosing its desirability. "What happened to their Grandpa then?"

"He got sick n died a few years back, leavin' them three by themselves. Figured they could make it. And they did do for the first few months, but then it all kinda went pear shaped," Casey replied, leaning in his chair, the young males face suddenly looking a lot more worn and aged.

"How?" Leo asked, intrigued and saddened by the tale.

"Ben and Sam always had their arguments, but they got worse. Like, you n Raph worse…" At this, both mentioned turtles glanced away in shame and embarrassment. "Then, just one day, Ben up n left. Sam told me they'd had a huge argument bout their parents, their grandpa n Danny n stuff. I knew she was really cut up bout it, but she just said she didn't care; that she was glad he was gone. I told her that she needed someone else 'round to take care o' things, n offered my place with me. She din take too kindly to that, and started to argue with me, telling me I could'nt even look afta meself, let alone them two. She said ragin' around the city bein' a vigilante weren't real responsible. That was when we lost touch… She up n moved later that month. Had no idea what had happened to her until tonight…"

"I guess it was a big shock then huh?" Donatello asked with a saddened smile.

"Yeah," Casey agreed quietly, nodding absently as his finger ran round the edge of the empty bottle sitting apathetically in his hand. "Just lucky you guys were there to help em the other night. Dunno what would'a happened otherwise."

"We were lucky _she_ was there," Leo replied. "If it weren't for her, then Raph might've…" He paused, not being able to say the word that so often threatened his family, and he so often feared. "…Been hurt." Leo finished quietly, his eyes not meeting his younger brother's gaze.

Raph nodded slowly, his arms folded almost protectively across his chest as his mind wandered back to the fight and the goon with the gun, "Not that I couldn't have handled it o' course. Just would'a been a bit messier."

His eldest brother guffawed incredulously, but didn't retort with anything knowing that at that moment, starting a fight was not the best idea. Plus the look sensei was giving him told him not to.

"At least you two have sorted things out now," April added with a smile, placing her hand over Casey's and giving it a comforting squeeze. "Its all water under the bridge."

Casey looked up at the charming red head and smiled, holding Aprils hand in his own. She always knew just how to make him feel better. Heck, she could smile and Casey would think it was Fourth of July. "Yeah," He replied, watching her eyes. "Come on, we've done our bit, we'll leave you guys to it." Standing, still with Aprils hand in his, he thanked them for the beer and the chat.

"We'll be by tomorrow to help Sam and Danny with some stuff from their apartment. Call us when they're ready will you?" April asked, looking mainly at Donny due to his more medicinal background.

"Sure April, I'll give you a bell sometime tomorrow. Thanks for coming down," Don smiled in answer.

The turtles and their sensei watched their friends leave after hearty goodbyes with intrigue at this new information. Good or bad information, they did not know.

* * *

_Sam's dreams were riddled with terror. Everywhere she looked there was blood. _

_All she could hear was the constant noise echoing and bouncing round her head; screeching and crashing; screaming and pleading. _

_Flashes of torn limbs and wedding rings danced tauntingly across her eyes; insane delighted laughter coming from the darkness at these disturbing images. _

_But there was no face to the laughter; just eyes. Glaringly red eyes that haunted your every move and burnt a hole right through your soul. They seemed to know everything, yet were inexpressive and cruel. _

_She tried to turn; to run; to do anything to get away, but the torn limbs grabbed at her and pulled her back, the wedding rings sliding across her body and bounding her tight. All the while, those red eyes stared at her from the darkness, enjoying her fear; enjoying her pain. _

Feeling herself screaming, all Sam could do to escape was will herself to wake up, and wake she did. Immediately her reaction was to clap a shaking hand over her mouth which hurt her chest more than she could say. However, it stopped her screaming. She felt the clamminess of the cold sweat, and took slow tremulous breaths to try and calm herself down.

Sam didn't want to go back to sleep now, not with those eyes haunting her sight even in the waking hours. But her exhaustion was relentless, and she could not prevent the inevitable event of shut eyes and slowed breathing.

Luckily for her, she went to a dreamless sleep.

* * *

A/n: There we go, we have the basic background. Bit short but it's explanative. And you even got a sort of peek at the baddy. Hehehe. What dya think? R+R! Lemme know! 

(1) This line was used by Raph in 'Touch and Go'. I love that ep.

Please, do not criticise me if I got these wrong. I got them off a website, and I know the internet is not wholly reliable:

**Kenji **- From Japanese _(ken)_ "study" and _(ji)_ "two".

**Takuma** - From Japanese_ (taku)_ "expand, open, pioneer" and_ (ma)_ "real, true".

**Takumi **- From Japanese "artisan" or "skilled". It can also come from_ (taku)_ "expand, open, pioneer" combined with_ (mi)_ "sea, ocean" or_ (mi)_ "truth".

**Hoshi **- Means "star" in Japanese.

**Ryou **- From Japanese "cool, refreshing" combined with "distant" or "reality".


	4. Chapter 4

TMNT is not mine. The OC's and storyline, however, are.

_- Life is not about how fast you run, or how high you climb, but how well you bounce -_

"Sam? Sammy?" A soft brusque voice whispered, the noise slowly penetrating the peaceful sleep that had enveloped the teen girl. She groaned, her forehead wrinkling as she clenched her eyes shut and pulled a pillow over her ears in a passive attempt at telling the voice to _bugger off_.

"Oi, sleepin' beauty, up you get," The voice said a bit louder, shaking her arm gently in an attempt to get the half awake female to open her eyes.

"Did you not take the pillow over the ears as a sign to piss off," a cracked voice snapped from beneath the soft pillow as it slowly levelled off to reveal a very tired looking Samantha, who was now glaring dangerously at her awakener.

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger," the turtle growled, folding his arms in amusement at the teen. "Doctor Donny told me to wake you up. Summink to do with after effects. Apparently you should try movin' n walkin' about, otherwise you might stay stiff for a while n it'll be difficult to move."

Raising an eyebrow at the red clad turtle, she brought her right hand slowly to her face to rub the sleep out of her eyes after finding that her left hand was temporarily out of service. _Everything yesterday wasn't a dream then_, she thought. Sam was about to tell Raph to go tell Donny where to stick his advice when she remembered her manners; they had after all saved her life. Mumbling inaudibly about lack of sleep, and grumpy know it all turtles, she attempted to sit up. It would be an understatement to say it hurt her.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow," She grimaced, remaining perfectly still in an upright position, her breathing non existent for that moment as she let the pain pass in her chest. Sam only noticed the concerned hands helping her when she focused back onto reality and began to breath softly again. "Hurt more than expected," Sam smiled sheepishly.

"Would do," Raph smiled back with a reprimanding gaze as he stepped back to allow her more room, though still in quick reach of Sam if she needed his help at any point.

Sam tried and failed to resist the urge to stick her tongue out childishly at the turtle, as she used her hands to shift her legs over the edge of the bed. Slowly, she bent her knee, the joint twinging as she did so. However, as she was prepared for it, the pain didn't seem as much. "You're right, not that I like admitting it," Sam grumbled with a good natured smile.

"Heh, heh, heh," Raph chuckled, wandering over to the wall where a pair of crutches were leaning against the wall. Picking them up, he wandered back to Sam and wiggled them in her eye line. "These are to help you move around by yourself in case your knee ain't ready to support you yet."

"Pfft, I don't need no crutches," Sam pooh-poohed them away and used her hands to help her off the bed, still keeping them wrapped around the edge of the bed as she tested her feet on the floor. Figuring that it was okay to finally put the entirety of her weight upon her legs, she let go of the bed.

She suddenly found the floor unnaturally close, and kind of painful. Apparently her knee couldn't hold her weight, and had buckled painfully underneath her. "Okay, maybe I do," Sam admitted regrettably, looking beside her to suddenly see a knelt turtle, ready to help her back to her feet.

This particular turtle smirked, shaking his head with concern as he wrapped one arm around her waist, letting her put one arm over his shoulder to support herself. "You okay?" Raph asked as he lifted Sam easily off the floor, watching her grimace as her knee straightened as she stood.

"Yup, tough as old boots me," Sam grinned, waving off his concern as he propped her carefully on the edge of the bed. She watched him curiously, as from what she'd gathered the other day Raph wasn't exactly the most sensitive of the turtles, nor the gentlest. It made her smile. "Thanks ya big ol' softy."

"Yeah, well, don't go telling the others. They might think I'll start doin' em favours," Raphael grumbled meekly, passing the crutches over to her and helping her fit them.

"Like helping me out?" Sam grinned, testing the crutches on the floor and then sliding off the bed, waiting for the thud that meant she had hit the floor. When it didn't come, she smiled, and began to practise walking with them around the room. "I guess this ain't too bad."

Glaring at the teen girl for having the upper hand, Raph leant against a nearby wall, crossing his arms and watching Sam wander around the room on her crutches, still looking slightly battered. Then again, if you're covered in bandages, bruises, and small cuts, you do have a slight tendency to look like that. Yet, however crippled she appeared, she still had a strong aura about her that made her somewhat intimidating.

Laughing, she stopped and turned to look at Raph, "You know, this is actually kinda fun. I remember nicking Ben's once when he broke his leg…" Sam faded out her sentence, her smile turning to a forlorn ghost of a frown as she pushed aside the subject and averted her eyes from the turtle.

Raph noticed this; it wasn't hard, and he empathised with the teen. He knew what it was like to have an older brother who you looked up to, who you idolised; only to have them leave. Of course, Leo had come back, but that hadn't stopped Raph from resenting his trip away. In some ways, he just wanted to tell Leo everything, to say sorry for the way he had been acting of late, but his pushy pride prevented him from even doing that. Looking to his feet, he was about to ask her about her older brother when she interrupted and changed the subject.

"Where are the others then?" Sam smiled, her happy façade covering the bitterness she felt inside at her brothers disappearance. "I'll show off my crutching skills."

Knowing the change of subject meant Sam wasn't ready to talk, he left it, and motioned towards the door, propelling himself off the wall with his foot so he could join Sam. "Most of them are out in the living room, but Leo's in the dojo and Donny's shut himself in his lab," Raph told her typically, opening the door for her.

Sam smiled at the turtle thankfully, and walked carefully out of the infirmary with him at her side. He was surprisingly protective seeing as he'd only known her for about a day, seeing as the rest of the time she'd spent unconscious or asleep. Then again, most of the turtles and their sensei had appeared protective of both her and her younger brother. It made her happy, but at the same time regretful. She knew that at one point, it'd be too dangerous for them to know her or her family.

"Hey, look who's finally up and about," Raph announced with a smirk as they entered.

Mikey, Danny and Splinter looked up with similar expressions of pleasure as they each greeted Samantha in their own way. Danny's was of course to run up to her and immediately ask to have a go on her crutches. This made them all laugh, even Splinter, who'd seemed to have taken on an almost fatherly role for Danny. Sam didn't mind too much; she thought it good for Danny to have a strong masculine role in his life, especially with all her own immediate male family gone. Although Casey was still around, she thought the angry vigilante angle wasn't exactly best for her little brother.

"_Slow down_," Sam chuckled lightly, glancing at Raph who rolled his eyes affably as Danny stood literally bouncing with impatience in front of them. "Lemme get to a seat first; then you can have a go." Her small brother let out an energetic '_yipee_' as he moved out of the way to give Sam more space to get to the couch, always following her just a few inches behind like a lion stalking its prey.

Sitting with a relieved murmur on the padded seats, Sam handed the crutches over to the eagerly awaiting nine year old who put them on immediately. The boy began to move around the lair, swinging from the instruments that were supposed to help the crippled, but of course made great toys for the healthy.

Raph watched the young boy with amazement, and then turned to Danny's older sister. "How can you 'ave so much patience with that kid?" He said with a small smile, glancing to his own younger brother, Michelangelo, knowing how well the orange clad turtle could rile him up.

"Years of practise," Sam replied with a loving smile, turning from watching her younger brother to look at the red clad turtle with a knowing twinkle in her eye. "He can still get on my nerves sometimes though, but that's what younger brothers were born to do."

The red clad turtle laughed in agreement, "You got that right."

"I thought I heard a familiar voice," Donatello smiled as he wandered down from his laboratory. "How's it going with the crutches?" The turtle asked, then caught sight of Danny, who by now had handed one over to Mikey and they were having races across the room. "Not what they're supposed to be used for, but I guess that's one way to utilize them," the turtle laughed.

"Yeah, it was going well until they were stolen," Sam replied, leaning on the back of the sofa with a smile as she watched Danny and Mikey play. It looked rather odd for a large well built turtle to play with a small human child as if he himself were nine. She was happy that the two had such a close relationship, and thought that Mikey was glad to have someone younger than him in the lair.

"Hey Don, how long is it going to take for my knee to sort itself out?" She asked hopefully, tearing her eyes from the young pair.

"It'll be at least a week until you'll be able to put you're weight on it," the purple clad turtle told her, putting on his knowledgeable façade. "But I don't want you to do anything to strain it for another week after that. There was some deep muscle and tissue damage. I don't want to risk it becoming a permanent injury."

"Not too bad then huh?" Sam smirked, rubbing her knee gently with her hand to ease the stiffness. "Guess I'm not gonna be much use round this place for the next couple of weeks," She said regrettably, finding herself a little useless. If she was going to stay, she at least wanted to earn her keep.

"You're a guest in our home Miss Jones, I'm afraid even when your knee is better I will not allow you to do much around here," Master Splinter said with a kind smile.

"But Sensei, I've gotta earn my keep somehow. I don't want to be any more of a burden then I already am," the teen girl said quickly, her eyes pleading with the aged rat to let her help around when and where she could.

Splinter stared at Sam with admiration, and a sense of pride. Slowly, a knowing smile formed on his lips, "You already do much to help even if you do not know it. However, I will consider your plea. But for the next few weeks, you are in our care, and must rest so you can heal. I must say though, you seem much more willing to help than my own sons. I'd say it's a blessing that you are here."

"Showing us all up now," Raph grumbled teasingly, shooting Sam a pleasant glare. "Thanks for that."

"Should do more to help around the lair then, shouldn't 'cha?" The girl retorted with a grin and a wink, bringing her good leg up to her chest so she could lean her chin on her knee. It also seemed to lessen the occasional twinges from her ribs.

"Yeah, I could just imagine Raph in a frilly pink apron, holding a feather duster and singing 'Whistle while you work'," Mikey grinned, his eyes twinkling at Raph. "Pink'd match your eyes. It'd even go with your gear! EEP!"

Mikey ducked just in time to avoid getting a face full of cushion as his older brother hurled the item towards him. "Hah! Missed me! Getting slow in your old age, eh Raphie boy?" The young turtle laughed, dropping the crutch carefully to the side, as this time the red clad turtle hurled himself at Mikey, and the orange clad turtle just had enough time to leap out of the way.

"Yeah, you'd better run laughin' boy!" Raph growled dangerously, as he turned sharply to run after Mikey.

"It's not my fault if you refuse to accept fate!" Mikey squealed with a grin, running backwards so he could watch the infuriated face of his brother, ducking and dodging the punches thrown at him. "You know pink is your true colour! Embrace the pink, dude."

"How about black and blue instead?" The red clad turtle shot back as he chased his younger sibling around the lair, much to the amusement of casual onlookers. Occasionally Raph got close enough to pitch an attack, but it was easily blocked by the carefree turtle. This just caused Raphael's anger to increase, which in most cases, was not a good thing.

"Stay still so I can hit'cha!" Raph gnarled, unsuccessfully attempting to kick his younger brother.

"Raphael, that is enough!" Master Splinter called out sternly. His voice wasn't loud, but it had that tone that always told you you'd done something wrong; it was well perfected. "You must learn to control this temper."

"But sensei, he's just so…Mikeys just…Argh!" Raph threw his hands up in frustration, his anger still at boiling point as he failed to express his brothers irritating behaviour.

"Whilst Michelangelo shall now _cease_ his incessant teasing," Splinter said sharply, gazing pointedly but briefly at the orange clad turtle to emphasise his order. "You my son, must learn not to let your anger consume you so readily," the father of the red clad turtle told him, the voice of the aged rat softening as he wandered over to his son.

While his fists were still clenched in annoyance, the anger in Raphael's eyes began to lessen as his father placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Yes sensei," the turtle sighed, averting his gaze in shame of his most blatant fault. He'd get Mikey back later.

"Good Raphie… OW!" Mikey rubbed the back of his head where his fathers cane had just been and gone with a painful smack. "Whad'I do now?" He yelped incredulously.

"You disobeyed my direct instructions," Splinter said calmly as he walked to the sofa where he sat beside Sam and flashed her a cunning smile. "You three will now join your brother in the dojo for afternoon training. It is time for my shows, and I wish to watch them in peace. Peter is waking from his coma, and we're finally finding out who the father of Denise's baby is."

* * *

Casey and April arrived a couple of hours later to help Sam collect enough paraphernalia to help her and her brother survive in the turtles lair while they stayed there. Sam was thankful for the help, as she would've never coped by herself, even with her younger brother at her side, especially with the crutches. She still didn't know how she managed to haul herself up and out of the sewer. 

Leo and Donny also accompanied the small human group to the surface, their appearance masked by large trench coats and hats. Mostly, the turtles were there just for the muscle and extra arms, but it also provided Sam with a small laugh as she saw the turtles in their disguises. Plus, Master Splinter had insisted that at least one of his sons travelled with them in case a group of perps decided to jump them. Mikey and Raph had been obligated by their father to stay behind due to their earlier argument.

The sunlight had temporarily blinded Sam and Danny as they'd appeared in a disused alley and walked into the daylight. Even though they'd only been in the sewer for a couple of days, the sudden drastic change in lighting had its effect.

Initially, the walk wasn't as long as they had all been expecting, but as they neared the apartment block that Sam lived in with Danny, the walk became a lot longer. Sam had regretted to tell them that she lived on the penultimate level of the seven storey block of flats, and it didn't have any working elevators. Whilst the turtles and Danny had no problems with this, the other three human had their own issues. Stairs were definitely not people friendly; especially people who were on crutches.

Sam had accepted help from the turtles and her uncle, and even made the effort to make her own way up at points unassisted. She did quite well until her chest began to throb painfully with the effort, and her arm muscles burned, causing her once more to resign herself to asking one of them for help. She inwardly cursed the person who'd designed this building without thinking of putting in working elevators. It was rude of them not to think of the disabled and elderly.

Danny had taken hold of the key to their apartment delightedly when it was handed to him. Sam had realised she would not be able to open the door whilst supporting herself. The young boy looked after it very protectively, making his teenage sister smile with amused pride.

The door swung open to reveal a non-too-shabby apartment, with a conjoined kitchen, dining room and living area. There was a small corridor that ran the length of the apartment, adorned with pictures, decorative paintings, and three doors. One door lead to a decent sized bathroom, whilst the other two were bedrooms- both of which held similar amounts of space.

April and Sam went into the teen girls room to gather clothing in a large duffle bag, while Casey took Danny into his room to do the same. Both had full bags by the end of it, filled with clothing and some other necessities, like toothbrush, shampoo and other cleansing implements. Wandering back into the main room of the apartment, Sam noticed Leo admiring the duel swords (1) mounted above the couch.

"They were my Grandfathers, then my Fathers," Sam told him with a sad smile. "They've been passed down through the Kagemori line, father to son, for a hundred years. They did belong to Ben, until my father saw I was more skilled with the blades, and passed them to me. I'm the first female Kagemori to own them."

"You must be greatly skilled. It has to be a grand honour," Leo stated, tearing his eyes away from the beautiful weapons to look at his friend, who nodded in reply.

Sam didn't tell the turtle that those blades on display were in fact cheap replicas of the real duel swords. Although sharp, and fairly well made, the real weapons were far superior in beauty and craftsmanship. Not even Danny knew that those swords on the wall were not the originals, for she kept it a secret. Stashed away in a fire proof metal box along with several other items of equal value to her were the swords. The other items included some prize photos, a few choice pieces of her mother's jewellery- along with her mother and fathers wedding rings, and the martial dress that her parents wore on their day of matrimony.

Also, there were a pair of Jutte stowed away in the box for Danny when Sam thought him ready and responsible enough to carry a weapon. The Jutte reminded Sam very much of nightsticks, yet they were far deadlier and much more refined.

"My brother's choice weapons after the loss of the duel swords were a matching Wakizashi and Katana blade," Sam told Leo, her eyes not moving from the undistinguishable fakes sitting on her wall. "He also carried with him a hand crafted Tanto, made for him by my Grandfather after the swords were passed to me. My Grandfather gave it to him because he thought my brother had resented me after I '_took'_ the swords away from him," she said, averting her eyes. "He didn't though…"

The blue clad turtle watched Sam curiously as she spoke of her older brother. It seemed to him that although the teenager felt bitter about her brother leaving, she still loved him and missed him dearly, even though she wouldn't readily show it. Leo's thoughts drifted to Raphael, and how similarly he seemed to act towards him. Maybe his absence for that sixth month period had affected his younger brother more than he would let on. It made Leo feel somewhat guilty, and he knew at some point they would have to sort things out once and for all.

"Well, we good to go?" Casey asked, interrupting the thoughts of the two standing before the swords as he heaved Danny's bag full of belongings onto his back; Donny doing the same to Sam's bag.

"Yeah, as far as I'm concerned," Sam replied with a smile, banishing the thoughts of her brother back into the locked room filled with painful memories she didn't want to access, but seemed to occasionally slip out. "Oh, hang on," she limped over to the kitchen, rifling noisily through a drawer with a single hand before she brought out a single key. "This is a spare key to our apartment, for just in case."

April caught the item as it was thrown to her, smiling thankfully at Sam before slipping it on her key ring with the rest of her keys. "If you want anything else now you don't have to trudge all the way up here," she chuckled.

"My point exactly, at least until my knee heals," The teen replied with a grin. "Oh, and can one of you take Danny to school tomorrow and pick him up? Only if it's not too much trouble."

"Aw, but Sam, can't I just _not_ go to school and get taught by Donny and Master Splinter instead?" The young boy whined, pouting moodily at his older sister.

"You're going to school, and that's final," She replied sternly, her eyes narrowing at the young boy with a look that told him not to challenge her decision. If she was going to do anything, she would make sure Danny had a normal…_relatively_ normal childhood.

Donny and Leo looked to each other with a grin at the nine year old; he was so rambunctious and spirited. Each turtle found it kind of cute that he'd rather stay with them then got to school. They could see why Sam wanted him to go to school though. There he would meet friends, witness the ups and downs of life, and generally become set for life out in the big apple. It would be normal; and normality was something the turtles had never known.

"Yeah, that's no problem. I've got to open up the shop anyway. I'll drop him off, and Casey can pick him up," April told her with a smile, already getting along with Casey's niece like a house on fire. It was nice to have another woman around to talk to, especially one who knew about the turtles. Sometimes it really grinded on one's nerves just to be around five male mutants, and a humanoid who had abnormally high testosterone levels.

"Thanks, it's a big help. I'll call the school later to tell them what's going on…Aw damn, I've got to call work as well…" That was when she went off into mindless ramblings about her boss and what she would say to explain herself, grabbing a small black book that lay beside the phone and pocketing it. Sighing, she adjusted her hands on the crutches she held and flashed a smile at the group, "Come on then, time to be off."

Casey and April took their leave first, followed by Danny and Sam. Last but not least were the turtles, Donatello and Leonardo, who locked the apartment door behind him. The blue clad turtle had to take one last glance back though, just before the door shut; he had a strange feeling that somebody else was there, watching them. It was odd, because as far as he could tell, there was no one there at all. Shrugging the feeling off, he caught up with the rest of the group who were about to manoeuvre down the stairs.

* * *

Unbeknown to the group who stood in the apartment, somebody was watching them. A somebody who had a maniacal grin that was hidden by a black balaclava. His eyes constantly staring hungrily at the young teen girl and her younger brother. He'd finally found them; after a whole two years of tracking he'd found them! His master would be so pleased! 

And he'd even found the turtles- a bonus on his master's part. He would be rewarded greatly for his discovery. This time, they would finish the job they had started seven years ago…

* * *

**A/n**: Well, what d'ya think? lol. I'm still setting up the storyline here, which explains the information in all these chapters. It starts to get better once Sam is mostly healed. 

Also, Duel swords are not actually Japanese, they're Chinese, but for this fic they are going to be Japanese. I want to apologise for this, and I hope it causes no offence. No offence was meant.

Wakizashi is a smaller version of the Katana blade, and these two blades can come in sets. A tanto is a dagger. Jutte are similar to nightsticks, but are much deadlier and look so much more…refined- they're like a cross between Sai and nightsticks.

Also, I thought I'd tell you the timeline type thing. The turtles are well into their 18th year, whilst Sam turned 18 a month before she met the turtles. Danny is 9, and Ben would be 20. Hope that clears things up as far as ages go, lol.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N**: The turtles have a large lair, and all bedrooms have doors… just thought I'd confirm any suspicions. Being teens, they need doors for angst ridden reasons. Unfortunately, mine does not slam…it sucks.

TMNT is not mine unfortunately…If it was I would be a lot richer! OC's and plot line are mine though, so paws off!

_- You've always meant the world to me, And that's one thing that will never change - _:No matter what, Nagai Masato

The two weeks passed, and slowly but surely, Sam regained use of her knee. It was towards the end of the first week that she noticed she could put some weight on it without it completely buckling underneath her. After that, it just seemed to get better and better. Donatello still had her on crutches, when, for the beginning part of the second week, she had to walk long distances; but after that, it was just happy limping. Sam was overjoyed with this, as it gave her a lot more freedom than she had had before, and it didn't put as much pressure on her chest as the first week had done, what with the crutches.

The teenage girl found she could do more around the lair, and on several occasions watched the turtles train with their sensei, laughing as Danny attempted to copy some of the simpler moves and fail with an loud _'oof'_ onto the mats. Under the guidance of Leonardo, who Master Splinter had deemed ready to train a student of his own; Danny began to grow a lot better at his martial arts. The young boy barely knew anything to begin with, as Sam didn't have much time to teach him anymore, and their Grandfather had only educated him in the bare basics. When he wasn't at school, or playing with Michelangelo, Sam was sure to find Danny with Leo.

Casey and April had been a great help over the weeks, taking and bringing Danny home from school, and even going on errands to Sam's apartment to get extras for the two youths. The young teenage girl continued to thank them profusely for their help, to which they only replied that they wanted to lend a hand. If it wasn't for all her new found friends, and of course her Uncle, then Sam would've never made it this far, and she knew it.

About the same time her knee had healed enough for her to limp, the stitches in her cheek also came out. It left quite a high-quality scar to add to her collection, and it made Sam smirk whenever she saw it in the mirror that she'd transferred to her temporary room from her apartment. The turtle's had set up the spare room in their lair for Danny and Sam the second day they were there.

It took another month before the splint on her left hand came off, and even then it was difficult to bend the fingers. Donatello had assured her that the annoying stiffness would pass in a couple of days, and she would soon have full movement in her joints. Of course, the release of her fingers let her have a lot more freedom still! It allowed her to help Mikey in the kitchen, randomly clean around the lair, and also got her back to work. However, her sympathetic boss only made her work part-time; Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. This left most of the week for Sam to spend chatting with the turtles; she'd gotten to know them very well over her healing period.

Leonardo she often had little talks with, usually after he and Raph had had a falling out, or he just wanted a chat and had a bit of spare time. It was nice; like having her older brother back again. They'd often joke and laugh about Mikey and Danny; saying how alike they were, and how easily they both managed to get on Raphs nerves but only Danny got away with it. They also talked about Danny's training, and Leo kept her updated with his flaws, and also his strengths. This allowed Sam to tell the turtle of her choice for Danny's weaponry, and that, as soon as Leo deemed him worthy enough, she would hand them to him.

Mikey was the joker; the one that always had a knack of making Sam laugh. They often got into food fights in the kitchen as she helped him with supper, or when they would randomly have the sudden urge to bake a batch of cookies. It was a release for the both of them in a way. As at these times, they'd also get into some pretty deep conversations, and Michelangelo would show his more mature side, sharing his inner fears with the young woman. She in return would confess to the younger turtle, and each would reply with good advice to the other and a warm smile. They'd also talk about Danny; and Sam remarked how lovely it was that Michelangelo had seemingly taken her little brother under his wing, as it were. Mikey just told her that he could relate a lot to Danny, and he felt protective over the young boy, like his older brothers were over him.

Donatello was the hardest one to get to open up about his feelings, as he mainly preferred to sit behind a computer, tinkering with some program or another that he'd created or updated. Sam would often drag him out of his lab with the help of one of the other turtles to enjoy some family hours with the group in the evening when they would play a game or watch a movie. Eventually, the conversations between the two began to get deeper and more relaxed. Sometimes they would stay up late into the night swapping theories or plans. It turned out that Sam was actually a mechanic down at a nearby Garage owned by a friendly guy called Ernie. The turtle found it helpful to have someone there that he could ask for advice on some of his inventions, or on the turtle's modes of transportation. Sam actually had a wide knowledge of these things, and the two would soon get into disputes on what would be better. These disputes would last a short period before they decided on a compromise and put it to practise. Their original objectives would turn out better than either had expected.

Raphael was more the one that she could identify with. They both enjoyed similar things and had related outlooks on life. Often, they would sit down together over a drink and just chat; about their day, about something they saw on the news, about family, or anything else they thought of. It was relaxed and effortless whenever the two talked. Of course, they both fought as well. What with having such similar attitudes they were bound to clash at points, but it would always end in a stale mate, both sides realising that they couldn't win. Sam was also good for Raph, although she didn't know it, all the others did. Whenever Leo and he would have a spat, and he'd run off and not return till late in the night, she would always wait up for him, a drink laid out ready on the table. He would grudgingly sit down and they would talk about it. Sam always bugged the red clad turtle to talk to Leo about his feelings, but Raph always had a way of dodging the question, coming up with some excuse or another. It was quite frustrating.

It was one of these particular nights that Sam found herself the source of an argument between the two eldest brothers.

As soon as her fingers had healed, Sam had returned to her apartment briefly to grab her duel swords; the family inheritance she protected with her life. She left the fakes where they hung on the wall, and also left the box of precious items. However, she took the time to seize Danny's future Jutte, and hid them in her shared room at the turtle's lair.

After asking both Master Splinters and Donatello's permission, Sam took to joining in on the odd training lesson; often taking some her spare private time to practise as well. They'd only agreed to it as long as she didn't push herself too hard, and took breaks whenever she felt the need to. Donatello only begrudgingly allowed her to train after she'd literally begged him due to the fact that her ribs had yet to heal completely.

The teenage ninja had even brought down her dojo gear to practise in. It was customary for her to train in her black and white shiromusashi jacket(1) and matching hakama(2); it would've been obligatory for her when her Grandfather was alive. She never managed to throw the habit.

Her pair of duel swords sat in their shared sheath, hanging intimidatingly at her left side. Sam's rich dark hair was tied back into a neat pony tail, keeping the tresses from straying into her face and distracting her from the tasks. All in all, she looked rather impressive in the full ensemble. It suited her and she felt comfortable in it. This whole outfit was a part of her; a way of life and an honourable heritage.

This particular night would be weapons practice, and her first sparring session with the turtles. Donatello made her avoid these due to her ribcage, but she'd assured him time and time again that she was fully capable of the odd sparring match. In fact, she was adamant that she would join them tonight as she was itching to use her weapons and flex her skills once more.

Sam was so hyped up that she was a good fifteen minutes early for the session, getting in some last minute practise with her duel swords. She even incorporated a few katas to get her blood flowing as her mind focused on the blades, and her body movements turned to her subconscious. It let her calm her thoughts, and focus her wits, allowing a connection to occur between her mind and body. Occasionally, a sharp twinge from her chest would bring her crashing back with a grimace, but she would soon recover, shaking off the pain with an irate feeling.

The young woman had been so concentrating so hard on her skills, she had not noticed the five mutants enter the dojo, watching her practise from just inside the doorway. It was only when she stopped, her breathing heavy as she slid her swords back into their sheath with a smile, that she noticed her onlookers. Glancing sheepishly towards the floor before meeting their admiring gaze, Sam grinned.

"Since we are all here, we shall start the warm up immediately," Master Splinter said. He didn't bother with idle chit-chat when in training; it just wasted time. "Weapons on the stand. Then ten laps of the dojo. Return here immediately after finishing. Go."

No one disputed these instructions, though there were a few exasperated looks on the younger of the four turtles at this prospect. It didn't take the group longer than five minutes to complete the set challenge though, each ending it with heavy breathing and elevated adrenaline; ready and waiting eagerly for weapons practice to begin. Of course, Master Splinter wasn't finished with warm up just yet. _Oh no_.

"Good. Now, Shutto!" The old rat commanded strictly.

The group followed orders immediately, moving into the stance they had already been taught by their sensei, and been told to practise many times before.

"Back fist strike!"

There was a chorus of cries as the group reiterated.

"Front snap kick!

"Upper rising block!

"Double kick counter!

"Again!"

The group did as was commanded, the moves rolling easily off their bodies. For Sam, it was slightly harder than expected, but she was enjoying the workout, and would not complain for the world.

"And finish (3)," The aged sensei ordered calmly, a loud clunk of his walking stick on the stone floor adding finality to his words.

The five ninjas stood to rest, bowing before their Master with heavy breathing as he finished their kata. Sweat beaded the brows lightly of the five that stood before the rat, hoping that now they had practised their kata, they would _finally_ move onto weaponry.

"Retrieve your weapons," Splinter told them, looking at each student in turn. "Leonardo with Michelangelo, Raphael with Donatello. Samantha will sit this one out with me and I shall re-pair after this spar. Go."

Sam felt somewhat disheartened that her new sensei felt the need to have her rest after the bout of exercise. She soon felt somewhat relieved though, as once she had retrieved her weapons and placed them back around her waist, her chest began to twinge painfully with every breath. Maybe it was best that she sat one round out to gather her strength. Quickly, she walked to stand beside Master Splinter, where she watched the four turtles spar in their directed partnerships.

"You are healing well," The wizened mutant mammal spoke to Sam with an admiring smile, his eyes not leaving his sons as they sparred before him.

"Thank you sensei," the young woman replied with an equal smile, this compliment from the ninjitsu master giving her a boost of confidence. She would prove herself in the next sparring match, if not just for herself, but for everyone that had been so helpful to her during her healing period.

Sam wondered who Splinter would partner her with. She highly doubted Michelangelo, due to his over-zealous nature, and she thought he wouldn't partner her with Raphael as they would probably rile each other up so much it would turn into a real fight. That left just Donatello and Leonardo, both of whom would probably go easy on her because of her wounds. She would have to tell them not to.

For the mean time however, she let herself watch the sparring matches going on before her. It was awe inspiring to see the four actually fight. Each had their own particular style, yet they all gelled together. Raph was the strength, and this was easily seen. He would go in head-first without thinking of the consequences, and use his power to his advantage. Mikey was the agile one, and would wear out his opponent; either with his taunts or his ability to dodge blows with ease. Donatello was the pacifist, and would prefer to calculate his movements, watching his adversary for weaknesses or flaws in their actions. He definitely preferred defence to offence. Leonardo was a blend of all of his brothers, yet his moves flowed and were almost perfectly executed. He knew exactly how to block every blow, and counter attack it at once. The eldest turtle was definitely the pillar of the group, and Sam could see why Master Splinter had named him leader.

It took a while for both matches to come to a definite conclusion, Leo's and Mikeys finishing first with the eldest turtle as victor, and then Raphs and Don's ending with Raph winning.

Sam wasn't surprised by the outcome of Leo's and Mikeys match, as she could often see the youngest turtle become distracted and lazy in his actions. Yet, with Donny's and Raphs, she had no idea who would triumph. Each turtle had their own strengths and weaknesses that levelled the playing field; but in the end it was Raphael's strength and fiery determination that prevailed.

"Good Raphael and Leonardo," Their master verbally applauded his sons, each bowing in thanks to their sensei. "Donatello, you did well, but you should be quicker in attacks. Michelangelo, you become too distracted. _Concentrate_!"

The two turtles shuffled uncomfortably, Mikey rubbing his backside where Leo had knocked him harshly to the floor. "Yes Sensei," They chorused in reply.

"Now, Samantha will spar with Leonardo, and Raphael will spar with Michelangelo. Donatello will sit with me. Begin," Master Splinter announced the second match pairings, nudging Sam encouragingly with his elbow before she walked towards the eldest turtle.

The eldest turtle stood opposite Sam, flashing her a small smile as they weighed each other up. Leonardo understood why Master Splinter had partnered her with him, his sensei knowing that he could control his movements to a point where he wouldn't put to much stress on Sam or her injuries. The turtle was also intrigued by how well she would fight, and had much looked forward to facing the young woman.

Sam stood before the turtle with a knowing smile on her face. She had been right in her suspicions over who her sparring partner would be. "Don't go easy on me now, or I shall be forced to kick your butt," She told the older turtle as they both bowed respectfully towards each other.

"I wouldn't worry about that," Leo retorted, his body immediately moving to an offensive stance as they began their match, his katana being brought out with a sharp sound of metal that he found so comforting.

The human teen equalled the offensive stance of the turtle with her own defensive stance, the duel swords that hung at her side being drawn out with intimidating speed. "Bring it," she smirked.

Leo obliged with a swiftness that almost caught Sam off balance as their blades met for the first time with a loud clang. He was fierce with his strikes, but only to a point where he thought her capable of blocking them. The eldest turtle found himself at some points struggling to block her retaliations, as she seemed not to be holding back on him. It seemed that he may have somewhat underestimated her; something that he would not do again.

The two moved about each other with such speed and grace, their onlookers had a hard time keeping up with the match. The sounds of metal on metal coming more often than not, and would often be followed with a cry as the opponent of the strike retaliated. Both fighters found themselves on their backs more than once, and their audience would presume the match would soon be over. Yet the floor bound fighter would soon find a way to right themselves and continue the match. It was like watching Mexican jumping beans attack one another.

Soon, the crowd that watched the sparring match grew, as Danny had now joined them and the other sparring match had come to a conclusion. Michelangelo had won over Raphael due to his amazing skill of being able to rile his brother up so much he could knock him easily to the floor with a few well placed attacks. This of course didn't bode well for Raphs anger, but it soon quelled as he stood watching the other sparring session that still seemed to be going on. He was amazed at the skill and strength shown by Sam; even with her injuries she was still giving Leo a run for his money. Yet, the red clad turtle could see that she was tiring as she began to grow sloppy in her moves. It made him worried that she might over do it, and cause herself more injury. It didn't help much that Leo didn't seem to be holding back on her.

Sam was breathing hard by now, and her chest was killing her, but she would not give up. Even though she was finding it harder and harder to counter Leo's attacks, the young woman was relentless. She knew now that her earlier words had gone to Leo, and he wasn't holding back on her, and this made her happy. Although she knew, even before the match had started, she didn't have a hope of beating the older turtle, she had decided that she would certainly give him a good pounding.

Yet it wasn't Leo getting the pounding, as Sam found herself getting hit by the hilt of Leo's katana, and in a split second she found herself knocked back and struggling to regain her balance. Just as she managed to, she found herself having to bring up her swords quickly to deflect a powerful blow from the turtle, driving him back as she did so with an enraged cry. Blowing a stray hair from her face, she started forward on the turtle, bringing up her duel swords to strike him, deflecting a blow as she went to land her attack.

It was then that the world suddenly decided to turn an ugly shade of black, and she felt the sword from her outstretched arm fall to the floor with a loud clang. She gasped loudly as pain rocketed through her torso, her now free arm quickly wrapping itself protectively around her lower chest. Barely registering anything but the pain, Sam felt her knees collide with the dojo floor, the arm that wasn't holding her chest hanging limply at her side, still grasping her other weapon. Whatever she did, she had to shake the blackness off. So, the young female closed her eyes and breathed in and out slowly, a grimace plastered on her face as every breath she took was accompanied by a sharp stab of pain in her chest.

As the darkness retreated and the pain began to ebb away until it became a dull throb, Sam finally realised that there were a pair of strong arms holding her shoulders and shaking her gently, calling her name in worried tones. All she could do to recognise this voice was reply with a weak groan, and a nod as she straightened slowly still in her kneeling position. Opening her eyes finally, she looked to see Donatello on one side, and Raphael on the other, both looking at her with their own concerned filled gazes.

Seeing that Sam was okay as she flashed him a comforting smile, Raph stood and turned to his eldest brother who looked as equally concerned and guilty as the red clad turtle felt himself. "What the hell did you think you were doing?" He half yelled. "She's still injured and you go n stretch her to her limits! I thought you had more sense. You could've really hurt her!"

"Raphael, stop…" Master Splinter began, but it did nothing to quell his son's anger. In fact, the red clad turtle didn't seem to have heard him.

"But _oh no_! Fearless leader knows best right?" Raph spat, glaring at Leo with a resentful anger. "You couldn't just for once go easy. You had to be all perfect ninja." He could see that his words stung his brother, and this made him even angrier, but not at Leo, at himself. He didn't want to do this to him, but he couldn't stop himself.

"Raph, I didn't mean to. I did go easy on her at first, but she showed me that she could handle it, so I upped my performance," Leo explained, trying to get his younger brother to see sense, also looking at the fallen Sam. "I'm sorry, okay? Is that what you want to here? That I messed up? Well, _sorry_ for not being perfect Raphael."

"Guys, hey, just stop it…" Sam attempted to stop the fight from her position on the floor, but her words didn't manage to penetrate the angry bubble that had formed around the two brothers.

"Upped your performance?" Raph was yelling now, his eyes narrowed and seeing red. "Is that what you call it? Now, see, I would call it just showing off! Yet the almighty Leonardo wouldn't see it like that. Nah, _course_ not!"

"I'm sorry _you_ see it like that, Raphael," Leo replied, averting his gaze from his brother for a moment. The eldest turtle's voice was level, yet there was a strained edge to it that said Raphs words had hit a nerve. "I was only doing as I was instructed. I'm not perfect and I've never tried to be. Everyone makes mistakes!"

Sam had had enough of their arguing, neither one of them had any point to continue this mindless quarrel. Looking to Donatello for some assistance in standing, she slowly righted herself, the singular sword that was still in her hand scraping across the floor quietly. Her own eyes narrowed as she looked upon the two eldest turtles as they fought, her gaze flicking from one brother to the other. From the corner of her view, she saw Donatello giving her a worried inquisitive stare that told her not to do anything stupid.

Ignoring this, the young woman turned her body to face the two brothers, lifting her sword high with both hands over her head and hurling it to the floor in-between them with an almighty crash. "Enough!" Her voice cried out aloud, stopping any further retorts between the two brothers as they turned to stare at her in surprise.

Sam now had to lean on the sword that stuck in the ground for support, but she did not let it show. Her eyes lifted to meet the stares of the two eldest male teens before her, narrowing them in disappointment at their senseless squabble. "Stop fighting, the both of you! It's pointless to argue!" She told them sharply, her eyes now turning to rest on Raphael. "I _asked_ Leo not to go easy on me. It was my own fault that I got hurt. I should've realised my own limits and stopped when I thought it was too much, but I didn't. Do not place blame where it is not due."

"But Leo should've…" Raph began to retort.

"Should've nothing!" The teen snapped in reply. "He did exactly what any one of you would've done."

"I can't believe your siding with him after he could've really hurt you!" Raph replied incredulously, his rage now turning to the fact that the young woman was against him. His deep brown eyes flickered around to the occupants of the room, all of whom seemed to hold the same expression that told him they agreed with Samantha. "This is stupid. I'm out'a here."

With that, the red clad turtle turned and swiftly stalked out of the dojo, leaving a brooding presence in his wake. One of which that was quickly shaken off by the fact that Sam once more fell to her knees, her hands still holding the hilt of the sword that stuck in the ground.

"Come on, lets get you out of here," Donny said with a soft concerned voice as he kneeled beside the worn Samantha, wrapping his thick green arms around her and picking the light girl up off the floor. Together, they both began to make their way out of the dojo, picking up and sheathing Sam's duel swords on the way with Leo's help.

"Raph was right, I should've gone easier on you," Leo said grimly, his eyes not meeting the gaze of the young woman as he handed over her second duel sword.

Sam looked at Leo, the purple clad turtle still helping her stand straight as she outstretched out an arm to Leo, and laid it on his shoulder, "No. Raph wasn't."

The eldest turtle finally brought his hazel eyes up to meet the dark chocolate ones of the teen girl, and let a small nod of his head go in recognition of her statement. Yet he still felt somewhat responsible for aggravating her injuries, and could not shake off the guilt that had swelled in his stomach.

The young woman that had been accountable for this guilt noticed the eldest turtles features lie about his true feelings. This annoyed her, and she shook the shoulders of the blue clad turtle gently, "I mean it Leo. You didn't do anything. I should've stopped when I began to feel weak." Sam let a small smile fall upon her face. "And if you keep blaming yourself, I'm going to have to pummel the guilt right out of ya."

Leo couldn't help but let a small humoured smile descend upon his face at this playful threat. The fact that she could still joke with him made the guilt lessen, and the knot in his stomach disappeared. He knew now that Raph was wrong; his brother still resented him for leaving for that six month period, and he was taking it out on him in anyway possible.

"You're not going to be doing any pummelling until you've rested up," Donatello scolded with a smile, still helping her stand as they once more went along their way.

The two left in silence, both concentrating on the events that had come to pass as Sam was manoeuvred towards the turtles couch so she could rest. Donatello helped Sam take off the belt that secured her swords to her waist, and laid it on the coffee table that stood decoratively in-between the couch and the entertainment system. The young woman then flopped onto the soft cushions with a relieved sigh, "You don't think I was too harsh with Raph do you?"

"Sometimes, I think my brother needs a good verbal kick to remind him what's really important," Donny replied with a smile, motioning to ask Sam if she would allow him to check her ribs. She answered with a polite incline of her head and removed her shiromusashi jacket to reveal a bandaged chest.

The turtle medic began to examine her ribcage, running his fingers over the healing ribs to check that they were still aligned properly and hadn't been jolted out of position by the exuberant exercises she had taken part in. As far as the purple clad turtle could tell, the ribs were fine, and still in place. He knelt back with a satisfied nod, "They're fine. What you were feeling was just the bruising that hasn't quite healed yet. I think in another month and a half, you'll be fully repaired. Just, don't over do it again. Had us all rather scared."

Sam chuckled happily and shuffled into a more comfortable position in the cushions that lay about her, tying her jacket up around against the small chill that she suddenly felt. "I won't. You can count on that," She replied with a smile, knowing that she would keep to her word as she knew now how much the turtles really cared for her. She did not want to dishonour their feelings.

"Now, get some rest. The others will soon be turning in themselves. You can move to your room if you want?" Donatello told her with questioning eyes as he straightened.

"I think I'll wait up a bit longer. If I fall asleep too soon I will regret it," Sam told the turtle with an encouraging smile. She had every intention of waiting up for Raphael, just like she normally would do whenever he went off in one of his moods. Mostly, she wanted to assure him that she was never against him, but she would neither account for placing false blame and wanted to explain this.

Donatello knew this, and just nodded in understanding before he began to walk away, "Just, promise me you won't wait up _too_ long for him. Okay?"

"As long as you don't stay up too late playing on that computer of yours," the young woman replied whilst a sly twinkle alighted her eyes. This made the turtle laugh, but he did not reply and just walked away, leaving the teen alone with her thoughts.

Sam thought she would be able to stay awake, so decided to randomly flick through the vast amount of channels that the turtles owned. Finally, she settled on watching 'Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves'. It was one of her favourite all time films, and just so happened to be showing on one of the many movie channels. If she couldn't stay awake for anything else, Sam was sure she would be able to stay awake to watch this film.

Unfortunately for her, she was a lot more exhausted than she had first perceived, and did not even manage it past the half way point of her film. Lying on the soft couch, she had slowly nodded off; her breathing becoming slow and melodious as her sleep turned from a light nap into a deep slumber, into which she dreamed of turtles and heroic outlaws.

Leonardo had come to check up on Sam as requested by Donatello, and found her soundly asleep on the cushions. Smiling, he picked up a blanket and brought it over to the young woman, draping it over her sleeping body gently. She had been so drained by the day's events, yet she still insisted on staying up to wait for his younger brother to return from wherever he had gone. The eldest turtle shook his head with dismay as he took a seat at the nearby dining table after switching off the television, deciding that now was as better time as ever to have a 'talk' with his brother.

So, the turtle waited, and waited, and continued to wait unto the early hours of the morn. It would be fair to say that Leo was getting sick of waiting, and he was supposedly the patient one out of the four. He was about to give up and turn in when the creak and shuffle of the lairs door signalled the return of his brother. Retaking his seat at the table, he folded his hands together as they rested upon the oak surface, and calmly watched the entrance of the lair for his brother. It was inevitable that Raph would storm through, as this was the only passage to their bedrooms.

The turtle of Leo's thoughts then lumbered through the door, and down the passageway. Raph had taken the time he was topside to think, and it made him realise that he had been in the wrong when he'd argued with his brother. He felt bad about it and even worse about turning on Sam when she had tried to reason with him. The turtle had decided that he would apologise to Sam as soon as he got in, knowing that she would've waited up for him as she always did. This made him feel all the worse for staying out so long, as he knew she needed her rest. After that, he would seek out his brother and attempt to sort things out, even though he knew he would probably chicken out. He didn't do well with sensitivity.

Raph sighed loudly as he wandered into the living area, his eyes immediately wandering to the dining table where Sam usually sat waiting for him. It would be an understatement to say he was a little surprised to see his eldest brother sitting there in her stead. He hesitated for a moment, and the thought of just walking right by and straight to his room was a tempting option, but he knew he couldn't, not with Leo sitting right there in front of him.

Sighing again, the turtle walked with a slow unwillingness towards his older brother, and took a seat opposite Leo at the table.

"How's Sam?" Raph asked uncomfortably, a gruff undertone to his voice suggesting this wasn't his idea of a perfect welcoming.

Leo knew that on most nights when Raph went wandering, the young woman would wait up for him and talk about what made him storm off. The blue clad turtle knew that it was she who Raph was expecting to see in his seat, and _wanted_ to see in his seat. Yet this did not deter him from his goal. "She's sleeping on the couch. She waited up for you, you know. She was just too tired," Leo explained, a warm undertone to his voice as his eyes glanced to the sofa where a small mound of hair could just be visible over the back.

The turtle followed his brother's eyes to the couch where he could see the top of Sam's head, and let a small smile cross his face. Yet it quickly faded as he was reminded of his brother's presence and his purpose. Raph turned back and let his eyes drift down to his hands where he twiddled his thumbs absently, "Listen, bro…I…I wanna say that I'm sorry for lashin' out at ya. I realise now you didn't mean ta hurt her."

This took Leo by surprise, and interrupted his train of thought. He never thought he'd hear his brother apologise to him, especially at this moment in their life. Leo couldn't exactly get the right words out to tell him that it was okay, and he didn't blame him, and in fact Raphael had been right. However, he was stopped in saying this when his brother continued.

"I also realise now that I'd been lashin' out at ya for no reason half the time. I kinda was a bit miffed that you left us for all that time," Raphael told his brother, knowing that he couldn't stop now he'd started. "Everyone looked to me as second eldest to lead, n I realised I couldn't do it. I couldn't be you, 'cause I was never as good. They kept comparing me to you, and that just made me realise how many flaws I had. I…I didn't…I _couldn't_…I just never thought that _I_ _needed you_ so much bro. That _we_ needed ya so much. I missed you, and when ya came back n everythin' went back to normal, I guess I just resented you for leavin' in the first place." Raph swallowed hard, not daring to meet the gaze of Leo due to the threat of tears in his eyes. "I'm…sorry. You are the better brother and the better son. You always were."

Leo watched his brother tell him all this with a rising sense of guilt for leaving them, and a sadness that his brother thought that he had to compare himself to him. "Raph," He began quietly, and hesitantly outstretched one hand to lie upon his brother's. When the red clad turtle didn't pull away, Leo continued. "There are no better brothers or sons in this family. You have many qualities I myself would love to have. I only left because I had to; because I needed to become a better leader so I could protect those that I loved. To protect _you_. I was never perfect Raphael; I need you guys as much as you need me. United we stand, divided we fall and all that."

Raph looked up to his brother's eyes for the first time, and realised why he left all those months ago. It wasn't for Leo's own gain, but so he could better himself to help protect his family. He let a small smile cross his face that echoed the one on his brother's as he finally understood how much they all needed each other, and how much each one of them was worth. "All for one and one for all," He replied with a grin as they both stood simultaneously.

"Exactly," Leo agreed with a courteous nod and an equal cheeky grin. It was then Raph did something that was utterly and completely out of character; he hugged him. Whilst shocked at this open display of affection, Leo liked it, and returned the hug tenderly as each brother lay their chin on the others shoulder. "Missed you too, Raph," The eldest turtle said, knowing that Raph had used up his openness for that evening, but knew that that is what the hug had meant.

Unknown to both of them, Sam lay back down on the couch after spying in on the whole conversation with a happy smile. Her words had finally gotten through. She fell once more into a deep sleep with a smile on her face, knowing that her presence in the turtle's home had at least been of some use.

* * *

**A/n**: Aww, don't you just love a soppy end to a chapter. Hehehe. All this filling time is for a reason, we get to the real good stuff soon, promise! 

(1) A padded jacket often worn by samurai when training.

(2) These are samurai trousers, often worn when training.

(3) This is a kata actually used in the 2003 series of the turtles. It was used in the episode 'Nobodys Fool'. I thought I might give credit where credit is due so I don't get my arse sued.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N**: I guess I'm lagging with updates due to college and stuff…But no fear! I have not given up! The song used in this beginning part is called 'Jeremiah was a bullfrog' by Three Dog Night.

I do not own the TMNT… But I can damn well dream.

_- To do is to be Descartes, To be is to do Voltaire, Do be do be do Sinatra - _

Breakfast the following morning was by far the most peaceful, relaxed meal the turtles had had in a long time. It would be an overly large statement to say that the four who were not involved, or had not listened to the previous nights escapades, were just a _little_ stunned by this event. It was practically unheard of for them to have a meal without some dangerous glowering.

After their brotherly reasoning the other night, Raphael and Leonardo had proceeded to crack manly jokes to each other before each going to their respective rooms and falling into a serene lasting sleep. Each brother having not had a decent night's sleep in a while, which made all the difference the next morning when they awoke refreshed, smelling the sweet scent of breakfast on the air.

This was odd in itself. They never smelt breakfast unless Michelangelo was in an extraordinarily happy mood, and had decided to wake up at some crazy time before every else to cook pancakes and various other items that were extreme treats for the turtles. Whenever he did, they all ended up rather pleasantly full afterwards; even Master Splinter.

That morning was different for some reason, and all the turtles had sensed it as they made their individual hike towards the kitchenette after making use of the over sized bathroom. Especially after questioning Michelangelo, as he obviously wasn't in the kitchen cooking when he bounded past Raphael, almost knocking his older brother to the floor. This only surfaced more questions, as they could definitely not imagine their father cooking, and Danny had joined them in their quest to find the chef. That only left one person…

As they neared however, an odd sound met their ears; or rather a song. The radio was playing and a voice other than that of the vocal artist was singing. Truth be told, it was a very peculiar song. Yet it was also extremely…_bouncy_. That was the only word you could possibly use to describe it.

"_Jeremiah was a bullfrog, he was good friend of mine.  
I never understood a single word he said, but I helped him drink his wine.  
He always had some mighty fine wine_."

"Who the hell is Jeremiah?" Raph questioned incredulously, looking to each of his brothers and Danny with a raised eyebrow. "And what's all this about Wine?"

"Got me stumped bro," Leo returned with an equally confused look, but it had a strong underlying hint of amusement. "_You would_ pick up on the fact that the song includes alcohol. But I'm guessing Jeremiah was a Bullfrog?" This made him crack a sideways grin at his red clad brother.

"Worked that out all by yourself did ya?" The younger brother in question retorted with a mirrored grin and a light-hearted glare.

Donatello, Michelangelo and Danny exchanged equally surprised looks as this playful banter that passed between the two eldest turtles. It was unheard of for them to joke about with each other nowadays, as it usually ended with Raphael exploding into a formidable eruption Mount Vesuvius would have been jealous of. Yet, here they were, totally ignoring this matter-of-fact rule as if it had never existed. It made the three smile.

"What happened with the constant war?" Donny asked in passing, raising an eyebrow as he gave his two brothers a sideways glance.

"Yeah, I was getting ready to run for cover in case one of Raphs veins exploded," Mikey smirked, rocking on the balls of his feet in waiting for an answer.

The two eldest exchanged a knowing glance, each rather not wanting to tell specifics on what had been spoken the preceding night. Leo was the one to eventually answer the questioning looks, "We came to a mutual understanding."

And that was where the blue clad turtle left it. The two youngest knew not to question it any further, and Danny just kept his mouth shut, not daring to speak in case he popped the happy bubble surrounding him and his adopted family. He'd been so happy for the past couple of months; part of him never wanted Sam to heal. Here, Danny had what he thought as four older brothers, an adopted father, and his sister, all under one roof. That and he also had his Uncle Casey and Auntie April, as he now liked to call the red head, to take him around topside. It was near perfect…

"_Sing it, Joy to the world..._

_All the boys and girls now,_

_Joy to the fishies in the deep blue sea and joy to you and me_."

"Oo, I know this song!" Mikey squealed enthusiastically, a huge grin spread across his face.

"You would," Donny rolled his eyes with an amused smile as he waltzed past his bouncing brother, who'd almost immediately begun to hum along with the tune.

"_And if I were the king of the world, I tell you what I would do. _

_I'd throw away the cars and the bars in the world and id make sweet love to you_," the orange clad turtle sung, twirling around and fluttering his eyelashes towards his older brother in jest.

Raph blinked at his younger brother, a passive look on his face before he raised an amused eyebrow and a concerned but impish grin adorned his features, "Sorry to disappoint Mike, but I don't swing that way. Try Leo."

"You wish," the eldest smirked as he took a teasing glance round at his brothers. He jumped the few steps down to the kitchen easily, landing with perfect grace and poise.

It was at this point that Donatello was going to make a quip about possible incest, but he was prevented the trouble by the increase of volume to the music, distracting him and turning his eyes to the opening kitchen door.

As the door swung open, a tired but smiling looking Sam wandered out, arms full with a tray of all sorts of breakfast material; pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon; and still singing happily to herself, unaware of anyone else's presence. She took the tray to the dining table, where she then placed the brimming plates next to the ones already laid out. It was a smorgous board of hot mouth-watering food!

"I've never seen so much food in my life," Mikey gaped dreamily, eyes wide and glistening as he stared at the more than tempting offering laid out before him. "Pinch me; I think I'm in heaven... Ow!" Rubbing his arm, the young turtle glared at his brother. "I didn't mean literally!"

"Should've said then," Raph grinned evilly, before bringing his gaze back to the dining table piled with breakfast and the young woman still finding room to fit all the plates onto it.

"It must've taken ages," Donatello wondered aloud, the first turtle daring to take a further step towards the dining table. They all seemed afraid of breaking the mind boggling dream before them.

"Why do you think she…" Leo began, but was cut off most unceremoniously by his youngest sibling.

"Don't ask why Leo! Just thank the Breakfast god! Hallelujah," He grinned, bounding after Donatello to the dining table, followed soon by an energetic looking Danny.

Leonardo turned to the second eldest, and shot him a questioning look, to which Raphael just replied with a shrug and a simple grin before following his younger brothers eagerly.

"This is indeed a treat, is it not my son?" Master splinter spoke suddenly from beside the blue clad turtle, making him turn in surprise. He'd been so involved in his own thoughts that he had not heard his sensei appear alongside him.

The aged rat gave a knowing smile, "I think she felt a celebratory meal was in order."

Leo raised an eyebrow at his sensei, suddenly confused at his father's words before it sunk in. Splinter knew about the talk he and Raph had had the other night. It didn't really surprise him; there was little you could hide from the wise old master. He'd probably watched the whole thing, which Leo didn't mind at all. He himself was more than happy that he and Raph now had an equal understanding of each other once more. It was as if he finally had his whole family back.

"Now, we best get there my son, before all of Samantha's wonderful cooking has disappeared," Splinter said with a twinkle in his eye, as he took the road to breakfast, his cane clinking against the stone with every stride.

Leo watched his sensei go with a disbelieving smile; however well he knew his father, Splinter still had the ability to surprise and astound the turtle. The teen male thought his father's words wise, and so walked to the table and took his seat beside Raphael. His eyes took a swift gaze over all the food before him. It was an awful lot, but he was quite sure that if they couldn't polish it off no one could, especially with Michelangelo the walking garbage disposal to come to their aid. There was a selection of cooked goods, as well as a couple of cereals, yoghurts and juices. He couldn't help but smile as he watched his brothers' already begin to wolf down the goods greedily.

"Bloody hell," Sam laughed as she joined them from the kitchen after finishing preparing the last of the breakfast material. Her hands were on her hips and a smile on her face as she watched them all devour breakfast. "I hope I made enough."

"Trust me on this, you made enough," Leo answered for them all with a smile as he began to pile his plate with some bacon, eggs, and toast; a bowl of cereal already half finished by his side.

"F'whash wif all dish breakfasht newaysh?" Mikey spluttered, swallowing his mouthful after asking his question, disgusting his father immensely.

"I thought you deserved a full family meal," Sam giggled as she watched the turtle enjoy her cooking. "Especially now you don't have to put up with these two arguing," she smiled, tugging on the tail's of both aforementioned turtle's masks affectionately before taking her seat beside Danny.

"I so resent that comment," Raph smirked, his full forkful stopping before it reached his mouth as he spoke. "Besides, it was all Leo's fault anyway."

"Says Mr Hot head," Leo snorted incredulously, taking Raphael's last rasher of bacon as punishment, eating it in front of his brother childishly with a grin.

"And _that_ was _my_ bacon shell for brains," Raph snapped irritably, glaring at his brother playfully with a small smile tugging at his beak.

"Should've been quicker then slow poke," Leo replied serenely, taking a spoonful of his cereal delicately, trying his best to hide a smirk off of his lips.

"You were saying?" Donatello raised an eyebrow at Sam with a grin as he too ate a pile of scrambled eggs off his plate.

"Spoke too soon didn't I?" Sam returned Donny's smile as she popped a cut of sausage in her mouth. "Way to back up a girl when she's defending you," the teen told the two arguing brothers playfully. The two brothers simply replied with a sheepish shrug.

Master Splinter watched the young woman curiously, and felt that there was also something she had failed to tell them; an ulterior motive to this large meal. "There is something else?"

The young woman looked up at the aged rat, and searched his questioning gaze, letting a small awkward smile adorn her face. "Yes," she replied quietly after finishing a mouthful. "It's also a thank you, to all of you for all you've done for myself and for Danny. You took us into your home without even knowing us," she paused, looking to each one with a smile. "You helped us in ways you couldn't understand."

Leo listened to her, knowing that the 'us' in her last sentence was actually supposed to be a 'me'. It made him smile inside and out, but a nagging feeling told him that there was still something behind her thank you; a furtive point that she was failing to point out. This made his smile quiver to a suspicious stare as he waited for this withheld information.

"My dear, you and Danny have played a bigger part in our lives than you yourself know," Splinter replied with a warm smile. "I'm quite sure that my sons will agree with me on this. We will be quite sad to see you leave."

"That was my next point of call," Sam replied, averting her gazes from the turtles and her younger brother. "I think it's best if we move back into our apartment the day after tomorrow. We have already burdened you all with our presence longer than I intended or feel comfortable with."

Leo hated it when he was right.

"Hold up," Raph said quickly after choking on a bite of cereal. "Leaving? When did you decide this? Did I hear Donny allow you to leave?" Okay, maybe he was over-reacting a tiny bit, seeing as they were only moving back into their apartment, but he'd grown so used to Sam and Danny being around, it'd be weird for them not to be there.

Michelangelo seemed to be as outraged by this idea as both Raph and Danny. "Woah, woah. Slow down, rewind and pause. _What?_"

"I talked to Donatello and Master Splinter about this the other day, and specifically told them not to tell you all, because of obvious reactions," Sam said quickly, trying to explain herself. It was at this revelation that several accusing looks were sent towards the purple clad turtle, which he shook off defiantly. "We're not even going that far away. We're just moving out. You're acting like we're immigrating to Tahiti… which does sound tempting, but no, we're not."

"But I like it here! How could you do this without asking me?" Danny cried out loudly, banging his fists on the table, glaring dangerously at his older sister with shining eyes.

"Because I don't want to overstay our welcome," Sam replied calmly, looking at her younger brother with eyes that willed him to understand. "You'll still see everyone… If Master Splinter agrees; they can even look after you when I'm working. And Leo still has to continue your training. We just won't be living here anymore."

Huffing moodily, but knowing that his older sister was speaking truth, Danny went back to demolishing his meal in silence. It was just like last time when they'd been uprooted unwillingly, except this time wasn't as drastic, and Danny could see the reasoning behind it.

Sighing with relief, Sam turned back to the turtles, and flashed them a smile, "Oh come on! We're not going anywhere far. Besides, if Danny has his way we'll be seeing each other more often than not. You'll be sick of us."

Sighing gruffly, Raphael realised he was beaten and backed down, shooting a teasing smirk at the teen girl; "You're telling me," he commented, receiving a light friendly punch on the shoulder from Sam.

Mikey looked to Danny, and ruffled the young boys hair affectionately, "Dude, you're gonna have to come back down! We still haven't finished 'space jumpers: revenge of the moon bouncer'."

This brightened the mood of the young boy immensely, and he flashed a recovering grin at the orange clad turtle, "You got it double T." It was then that the two friends completed some sort of weird hand shake thing, which all onlookers had trouble following. To them, it seemed like something out of one of Mikey's comic books.

"Double T?" Leo dared to ask after watching what he supposed was a 'secret' handshake. "Do we want to know?"

"Turtle Titan! Protector of the innocent…" Michelangelo announced, standing swiftly with hand held over heart.

"Defender of the weak…" Danny continued, copying the turtle's movements.

"Saviour of New York city…"

"The masked magnificence himself, and his faithful sidekick…"

"The daring Danito!" Danny announced proudly.

The group of onlookers blinked stupidly as they watched the posing 'super heroes' with amusement. There was a momentary lapse in all movement and noise, before the table burst into fits of laughter.

"Masked menace more like," Donny chuckled, putting his fork down to stop himself from dropping it and slapping Raph in a jovial high-five.

"You've got to be kidding me," Sammy laughed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Please don't tell me you have costumes as well."

"Don't ask, it's best not to know," Leo sniggered, not daring to look up from his meal in fear of falling into laughter once more. Super hero costume: twenty dollars. Breakfast: forty dollars. Look on his father's face when said brother announces his super hero gig at the dining table: _priceless. _

"You all laugh now," Mikey pouted, falling back into his seat with diminishing enthusiasm. "But you wait and see. We'll be the super hero team of the century." Danny backed this point up with a fierce nod as he folded his arms.

"That'll be the day," Raph snorted, his laughter finally subsiding as he finished off his cereal with one quick swoop of his spoon.

"My son's, I think that is quite enough bickering for one meal," The old rat scolded with amusement, not even thinking to hide a small smile from his face. "I think I will put back morning training for an hour in allowance for the meal. I do not wish to gain a bout of indigestion."

At this, the three younger turtles gave Sam an appreciative, if not admiring look that seemed to say 'you rock', and this made Sam smile as she finished off her own meal. Looking around the table, there was barely anything left. Mainly there were the boxes of cereal and yoghurts, but that was fine seeing as they could just be stuck back into storage. Sam was sure if she left the perishable food on one large plate on the dining table, it would slowly disappear over the next hour.

"If I ate anymore, I think I'd explode like one of Raphs remaining veins," Mikey puffed out his cheeks before letting the air out in a respectful and contented sigh. It amazed his brothers that even while he said this, he was reaching for the last sausage and soon nibbling on the end. "Dud-ette, you are the breakfast goddess."

Sam grinned as she piled empty plates onto one another, placing them on a tray she brought out to help her transfer the dirty china to the kitchen sink. "Cheers. I don't cook that often. Usually it's just ready meals because I don't have much time," she said, balancing a tray in one hand and two jugs in the other.

"Here, I'll help," Leo stood, gathering empty bowls and cereal boxes in his arms before he followed Sam into the kitchen. He placed the dirty bowls next to the sink with the rest of the filthy kitchen ware before tucking the cereals back into the cupboards.

"You don't have to Leo. I'm fine doing it myself," Sam replied, surprised at the help but not refusing it out-right either.

"I want to," the eldest turtle said sternly, flashing a grateful grin. "Call it my little thank-you for talking to Raph all those nights. Something you said must've gotten through."

All he received in reply was a small chuckle and a knowing tap of her nose before she exited the kitchen, returning a few moments later laden with the last of the grimy cups and dishes.

A thought suddenly struck Leo, and he turned to face her with an accusing stare, "You weren't asleep last night were you?"

Sam turned to face the blue clad turtle, and a slow smile formed on her face as she shook her head. "I'm a light sleeper. Besides, I couldn't help but have a sneak peak. I wanted to see whether all my nagging had been wasted," she chuckled before walking to the sink and running the hot water.

Leo couldn't help but chuckle along with her, shaking his head in disbelief. "Typical," he murmured loudly, taking a tea towel off the hanger and moving to stand beside Sam, drying the dishes that she'd washed.

For this, the eldest turtle received a face full of soap suds from the sink, which he spluttered at in surprise and wiped from his now darker blue mask with a playful glare. "Uncalled for," Leo smirked, scooping a load in his hand and dumping them on the top of Sam's head.

The turtle burst into laughter at the teen's unimpressed stared, as she placed her hands on her hips and blew some stray soap suds that slid down the side of her face out of the way. "This means war," Sam hissed light-heartedly, hurling a ball of foam and water at Leo that hit him side on, turning the rest of his mask dark blue.

"You asked for it," he warned, using the same tactic and hurling a load of suds and water at Sam, soaking her t-shirt through. "Hah, hah, ha… _Bluch_!" He coughed out bubbles as he failed to dodge a face full of soapy water, making Sam laugh.

"What the hell is going on in…" Raph exclaimed loudly, stepping through the door to witness an instant freeze in the washing-up-warfare. Standing there quite in surprise, he stared at the soaked Leo and Sam, both of whom had a pile of dripping soapy water and suds in their hands. He laughed loudly at them both, and regretted it almost immediately as he too soon found himself as wet as them.

"Nice one," Leo congratulated with a laugh, high-fiving a very mischievous looking Sam as they both stared at a somewhat sodden Raphael. His brother reminded him of Klunk when they had to give him a bath; rather downcast and angry.

"Alright, that's it," Raph growled with a grin, storming to the sink and flinging water at both the perpetrators of his sodden state.

Leo brought his arms up to shield himself as he backed away, laughing good-naturedly, whilst Sam yelped with glee and fled to seek refuge behind a cupboard. "No fair! You have direct access to the sink!" she pointed out with a laugh.

"What's all the noise about?" Donny questioned, peeking his head round the door and barely moving back in time to avoid a face load of dirty water. "Hey! What the hell?" He then saw the three soaked beings and laughed from his safe haven sheltered behind the door. "You all looked like drowned rats. Uh, no offence sensei."

It was at the word 'sensei' that all war ceased, and the three stood to attention, looking exactly how Donatello had described them, except he missed out the word '_grinning' _in 'drowned-rats'. Even Leo couldn't hide an exhilarated smirk.

Master Splinter entered, and took one look around the kitchen and then at the three teens before turning and walking right back out again. He said nothing as he left, but a clear shout made all three teens groan; "Thank you for offering to clean the kitchen! It was very filthy."

* * *

The kitchen didn't take too long to clean, since there were three of them, it was already half done, and it wasn't exactly a large room. They even managed to get all the washing up done from breakfast and put it all away. Although it didn't take long to clean, it was a tiring job, as not only did they manage to get soapy water on the floor, but also on the ceiling. Sufficed to say, the ceiling was sparkling by the end of it, as was the rest of the room. The three teens however, were the exact opposite; sweaty and covered in muck.

Call it luck, or bad luck, they used up the extra hour before training, and so had to make their way immediately to the dojo after finishing, stinking and filthy. After that, the three were the first to use the showers on express orders from Master Splinter himself. Sam took the cubicle whilst Leo and Raph used the open showers, all the grime that had covered their bodies flowing down a small slope and into the drainage system Donny had so kindly hooked up for them.

Sam ended up cooking dinner that evening too, with the help and guidance of Michelangelo. They had spaghetti bolognaise a la Mikey and Sam. This was basically the same as normal spaghetti bolognaise, but the sauce had a slight peppery twist that gave it an irresistible after taste.

It also happened to be movie night down at the lair, so Casey and April had joined them, bringing with them a few choice films requested by the group. These included 'The Mummy', 'George of the Jungle' and 'The Scorpion King'. Each film met the criteria (luckily) of each group member. April and Sam both proceeded to annoy each male there when they sighed longingly at the screen whenever Brendan Fraser came on. This happened especially loudly, and was followed by a long dreamy conversation, in 'George of the Jungle' when said male film star was draped in a flowing white shirt and was running around in a field with some well combed horses.

"What's so special 'bout this guy? He runs around in some field wid a couple o' horses and suddenly all the ladies are swooning. I mean, _I_ could do _that_," Casey grumbled exasperatedly to Raph, who nodded glumly in reply, folding his arms moodily.

"Tell me about it. I'm out there saving New York day in, day out with ma bros, and we don't get one ounce o' luck. Yet one minute with a load of horses an' this guy has em lining up!" Raph added disbelievingly, gaining two glares from the girls.

"Dude, you're a giant turtle," Casey replied tactfully, earning himself a couple of death glares, from April, Sam _and_ Raph. As if Raph needed reminding.

The night went similarly to his throughout each film, yet it quietened down at the 'Scorpion King' as April and Sam were not physically attracted to anyone in the film. The only sound, however, that did puncture the quiet was the heavy breathing of one young male who had fallen asleep on Sam's lap towards the end of 'The Mummy'. Sam only noticed this when she looked down to ask a question, and smiled as she saw Danny's closed eyes and slight open mouth. "Hey, guys. I think someone was a bit tired," Sam whispered, already sliding her arms underneath the young boy carefully, cradling him in her arms.

"Hey, let me do that," Raph said quickly after glancing at Danny with an amused smile. The turtle stood and took Danny easily, but surprisingly delicately in his built arms.

"Thanks," Sammy smiled at the older turtle, standing herself and walking beside Raphael to the room that she and Danny shared. She was glad Raph had taken her brother, as she still wasn't one hundred percent sure that she could manage lifting him, even though her ribs were basically completely healed.

Once they reached their room, Sam opened the door for Raph and closed it softly behind them after switching on the light. She then pulled back the sheets to the cot that Danny slept in, and watched as the young boy was slowly lowered onto it. Kneeling down, the older sister then pulled the sheets to her brother's shoulder and tucked him in, placing a soft good-night kiss on his cheek. "Sleep tight my little Ryou," she cooed quietly, standing and flashing a gentle smile at Raph.

Raph looked down at the sleeping child, before looking back at young woman before him, returning the gentle smile. He knew exactly how she felt about Danny, as although he didn't show it in the same way; he felt the same about his youngest brother, Michelangelo. It was that older sibling protectiveness that he could empathise with; he even felt it with Leo sometimes although he knew that his older brother could look after himself well enough. "Come on, before Mikey eats all the popcorn," the red clad turtle broke the silence with a truthful whisper, moving to the door and opening it for Sam.

The female teen walked out, stopping just outside her door and waiting for Raph, "Hey," she began, looking at the turtle as he closed the door softly behind him, illustrating a gentleness he hardly ever showed. "Thanks. For everything. You big old softy."

"It's no problem," Raph replied with pleasant surprise, smiling towards Sam. "'Sides, should be me saying the thanks. Without your nagging, I would'a never talked to Leo."

"Yeah, well, don't go telling the others, or they might think I'll start doing them favours," Sam retorted good-naturedly, quoting the red clad turtle from one of the first times they talked and had a similar conversation. It was then she hugged the giant turtle, hesitantly at first, before she relaxed when he didn't pull away.

Raph was wary at first about the hug, before he soon calmed and returned it, smiling at the open display of affection.

"Now come on Mr Hot head or the popcorn really _will_ all be gone," Sam smirked when they pulled apart, already walking with the red clad turtle back to the couch, where as both she and Raph had predicted, the popcorn bowl was almost empty.

As the older turtle passed, he snatched it off his younger sibling and re-took his seat next to Casey on the couch, already munching on the popcorn before Michelangelo had a chance to exclaim in outrage.

They managed to get through the film without a hitch from there-on, except when Mikey had to pause it to go and fetch more popcorn from the newly cleaned kitchen, and when Casey had to make an unwarranted toilet break, which was entertainment in itself as he tripped over the edge of the coffee table in his haste.

However, it was towards the end of 'The Scorpion King', and therefore towards the end of the movie night when an unjustifiable scream echoed around the liar, making each member of the group jump in surprise. Raph and Leo even readied their weapons as second nature.

"Danny," Sam whispered in fear, and stumbled to stand, already running towards their shared bedroom in haste, not hearing the feet pounding after her.

Skidding to a halt outside their room, Sam shoved the door open and fumbled for the light switch, turning it on to see a shaking tear-streaked Danny covered protectively in bedding. "Danny, my god, what is it? What happened?" She said fearfully, kneeling at his side and wrapping her arms around her younger brother, drawing him comfortingly into an embrace.

Shifting into a more comfortable position for herself, she rocked Danny gently in her arms, cooing soft words in his ears, "Hey... It's okay. What's the matter?"

"N…n…nightmare," Danny whimpered, still shaking and sobbing into his sisters shoulder, his own arms clinging to her body. "Mum and Dad… Wedding rings and evil red eyes…And there was laughter…Sammy, I'm scared."

Recognising the nightmare immediately as one similar to her own, she shuddered involuntarily, frowning at the young body sympathetically. All she could do was comfort him, and tell him of sweet lands where nothing could harm him. "It's fine my little Ryou, calm down now. Nothing's going to hurt you, it was all just a nightmare," she whispered amorously.

This seemed to do nothing for the young boys' nerves, and the shaking didn't lessen. Sighing, Sam tried to think of something to say, or to do, to help her little brother. Suddenly, she remembered a lullaby her mother sang to them when they were younger to calm them after nightmares.

"(1) _Minamino shimanisumu nakijakuru kodomotachiwa  
yoruhahani tsurerarete  
hoshio miniyuku,_

"_Nakunayo, nakunayo  
mitegoran  
konohoshizorao  
kowaimonomo nayamimo  
kieteyuku  
nanzennenmo maeno hikari_," Sam sung softly, stroking the hair of her little brother affectionately. It seemed to be working, as slowly but surely, his shaking began to diminish and his sobs turned to small hiccupping whimpers.

From the doorway, the small group watched and listened as the scene played out before them with a sense of worry and relief. Danny was fine, it was just a nightmare, yet they worried at how it affected the young boy. None of them had seen the boy act so, except when his sister had been unconscious the first time they'd met. All of a sudden, the group felt rude, as if they'd trespassed on the siblings' privacy. So, one by one, they all trickled back to the living room where they finished the film and bade fond farewells.

Raphael and Mikey were the last to leave, as they both stood by the door for a while longer, listening to the lullaby that Sam sung to her younger brother…

"_Chiisaitoki doao shime  
kurushiihodo naitakedo  
hatenonai kono uchuo  
mita atowa  
namidamo tomatta,_

"_Nakunayo, nakunayo  
mitegoran  
konohoshizorao  
kowaimonomo nayamimo  
kieteyuku  
nanzennenmo maeno hikari._

"_Don't you cry, baby  
don't cry, baby  
look up and see the sky-full of stars  
fears and worries will disappear soon  
the light that travelled  
for a million years._"

The song finished with a soft yawn from Sam as she gazed down upon her younger brother soundly asleep in her arms. She smiled, laying him back down upon his cot, yet for all her might she could not make him let go of her. Stifling a small laugh, Sam rubbed her eyes tiredly, and lay down next to Danny, pushing some hair from her brother's face before she too closed her eyes and fell softly asleep. Both brother and sister giving each other comfort by just being in their presence.

Raph leant in and switched off the light silently, before stepping out and letting Michelangelo close the door quietly behind him. Each brother looked at each other, and smiled, knowing how the other felt.

* * *

**A/n:** Awww, how'd you like that? lol. I enjoyed writing the soppy parts as the next chapter is the first of the angsty/horror parts of my fic. 

I did not write 'Aiko's Lullaby'. It was written and performed by Aiko Shimada and Elizabeth Falconer. I take no credit what-so-ever.

I translated it to the best of my ability. Apologies for any mistakes, or if it doesn't quite make sense.

(1) Aiko's lullaby

I.

The crying which lives in the island south as for the children who come accompanied by the night mother  
The star it goes to seeing

(chorus) It cries, is, it cries, is, seeing, viewing  
This starry sky fearful ones and trouble  
Thousands years which keep going out light before

II.

When being small, however you closed the door and painful extent cried  
After you looked at this outer space which does not have the end also the tear stopped

(chorus)  
Don't you cry, baby  
Don't cry, baby  
Look up and see the sky-full of stars  
Fears and worries will disappear soon  
The light that travelled  
For a million years


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n**: Omg, an update! Shock, horror, gasp, lol.  
I do not own the TMNT. However, Sam and Daniel are mine.

**WARNING!**  
This chapter contains blood, gore, and horror, as well as some strong language.

_- Fear is nothing but the anticipation of pain, be it physical, mental, spiritual or emotional -_

Two long weeks had passed since the two humans had moved out of the turtle's sewer home and back into their cosy apartment. It hadn't taken too long to transfer their belongings back now that Sam could help, and it took but one trip with everyone carrying a fair share.

Danny had gone back to the normal routine of school, and then occasionally, after finishing his homework, he would travel down into the sewers to meet up with Leo so he could continue his training. At this time, Sam would often join him when she wasn't working late shifts at the garage, which was more often that not now she had work to catch up on. Her boss was definitely keeping her occupied so that when she came home, she barely had enough energy to cook a meal for Danny, let alone attempt a training session with the turtles.

The young woman also seemed to have constant washing, ironing, and other house keeping duties to stay on top of. It left her exhausted most of the time, and she never usually had a free moment to spare for Danny, the turtles, or April and Casey. She would frequently leave Danny with one of them so she could have a night off.

However, she always took Friday nights off. It was a tradition to have a movie night on a Friday evening with a pizza take out. They'd done so for years, and Samantha wasn't about to stop it just because of work. Besides, Danny would never forgive her, as it was the only night they actually had family time; just the two of them.

So, every Friday night, Sam would ring up Luigi's and pre-order one large thick crust pepperoni pizza, then on the way to collecting it she would rent a film specified by her younger sibling. That night they had managed a mutual compromise, and decided on 'Hellboy' as their movie.

Danny had been at the turtle's for most of the afternoon, training with Leo, so Sam had arranged to meet him at a manhole covering in an alley beside Luigi's. Her footsteps echoed loudly on the damp ground from the light drizzle that had begun to fall from the clouded sky. Sam had remarked dishearteningly to herself that it was a shame you couldn't see the stars, as it was this reason that she preferred the night. She always loved to watch the white glows that they emitted against the midnight blue. That is, after all, what Hoshi meant; star.

"Danny, you there?" She hissed into the darkness, the film and pizza held protectively in her arms hidden beneath her jacket.

Tapping her foot impatiently on the concrete, she awaited the hopefully imminent arrival of her younger brother, accompanied by at least one of the turtles that she hoped she could give the extra two pizzas she held in her other hand to. It was another job of hers to provide a constant supply of takeaway to the underground home of her friends. Of course, April and Casey also did their fair share of that, as well as grocery shopping for the five mutants. Together, they made up a well oiled, yet very odd family.

"It's your friendly neighbourhood pizza delivery girl," She cooed, raising an eyebrow at the still manhole covering. "And your pizza is getting cold!"

"You know how I prefer my pizza warm," Mikey whimpered, pushing the manhole covering carefully off and leaping out, pulling Danny up behind him. "You rock dude-ette," the turtle grinned as he breathed in the smell of still warm pizza, taking the two boxes from her with a speedy thank you before diving back down to the sewer.

"Hey, you owe me still for last week!" Sammy yelled after the fleeing turtle, who just laughed in reply. Rolling her eyes, she nudged Danny onwards. Sometimes, she wondered why she ever let them get away with it. She then reminded herself of how much they'd done for her and her brother, and how much she valued their friendship.

"Hope you're not too tired kiddo," Sam smirked, tugging Danny's hood over the top of his head to prevent the rain from falling onto him.

"No way," Danny exclaimed, slapping Sam's hand gently off his jacket's hood. "Leo made me do meditation most of the evening. He only just finished teaching me a kata before it was time to leave," he explained excitably, yet a hint of restlessness told Sam that her younger brother wasn't too happy about the meditation part. He never did have any patience.

"Meditation will do you good. Might make you focus more… Like on your school work," Sam scolded lightly, glancing sideways to her brother who flinched at the mention of school.

"Your math teacher called. Apparently, your grades are slipping," Sam watched her brother carefully, and noticed the 'damn-I've-been-caught' look. "If you're not careful, the next time you go down to see the turtles, it'll be for extra classes with Donny."

She couldn't help but smirk at the exasperated look on her younger siblings face. It was hilarious to watch, as she knew just how much her brother disliked the more academic subjects.

Their conversation had taken them all the way back to their charming apartment, where Sam had to fish awkwardly with one hand for her keys before opening the door. A sudden shudder travelled through her spine as she stepped through the doorway, as if there was something off; something wrong. A foreboding sense of being watched hit her like a crushing wave, but she shook it off as pure paranoia.

As soon as they got in, the rain began its onslaught, accompanied by a large crack of thunder. Shooting a quick glance at the window that lead out onto the emergency stairs, she laughed as the rain rocketed down. "Made it home just in time," she murmured, removing her jacket and chucking the pizza onto a small coffee table that sat in front of the television.

The DVD that was held in her hand was snatched away from her by an over zealous nine year old who proceeded to skid along the carpeted floor, gaining an electric shock from the metal stand that the DVD player sat on when he attempted to press the open button. Cursing loudly, and receiving a smack upside the head for his use of language, he put the disk in the player before leaping onto the worn sofa.

"I think that's the fastest I've ever seen you do that," Sam exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips as she watched her younger brother grab the remote. "Training is paying off."

Grinning back in reply, Danny flicked on the television and sat back, popping open the pizza box and removing a slice, before being shoved over by Sam as she sat beside him, taking her own slice of pizza. "Switch off the lights," Danny spluttered through a mouthful of pizza, not removing his eyes from the box of moving pictures.

Sam looked indignantly at her younger brother before doing as she was told, switching on a table lamp beside them so they could at least see what they were eating. After all participants were comfortable, Danny pressed the specified 'play' button on the remote, and the movie began, flashing a scene of an old decrepit looking stone structure.

Professor Trevor Bruttenholm (pronounced Broom) had just coaxed a young devil creature down from a stone ledge and was now cradling him in his arms when the power decided to suddenly cut out on the television, before turning out all the lights as well. This was immdiately followed by an obscenely large crack of thunder and bright flash of lightening.

"Aw man, it was just starting to get interesting too," Danny huffed, folding his arms and shuffling loudly on the sofa. "This sucks. Stupid storm."

Sammy looked around, and thought the sudden power cut seemed slightly ominous, but the storm did give a good explanation as to why. The lightening must've struck a power line or something. "Stay here, I'll go grab some candles and spare torches," the teen said, pushing herself out of the comfort of the sofa, taking an inquistive glance out of the window. Seemed as if the whole street was out.

Danny nodded, though he knew Sam wouldn't be able to see him so added a irritated grunt in recognition to her statement.

Leaning over the arm of the couch, he reached down and pulled a spare torch from behind it. Sam was a bit too overprepared sometimes. Blowing off the dust, he flicked the switch and scanned the room quickly. Damn power cut, how dare it ruin his movie.

Taking another sliver of pizza, he amused himself by getting up and wandering around the living room, seeing how many weird shadows he could create with the hand held light source. He at one point decided that the shadow he had made was a deformed turtle-rabbit, due to it's long ears and rounded back.

It was then a darkened shadow crept across the window, interupting his game. Danny could feel himself tense up, as his eyes dare not turn to stare at it directly for fear of what it could be. Really, he should wait for Sam and turn his light off, but something prevented him from doing anything. He just stood there, with his back to the glass, hoping that he'd imagined whatever he caught from the corner of his gaze. Maybe he was just over reacting, it could be nothing. Could just be the rain.

Yet as he stood there, the shadow seemed to still, until it was merely a swinging black mass, occasionaly strengthened by a flash of lightening. It was completely unmoving apart from that odd swaying motion. It didn't move otherwise, it didn't even try. It seemed as though all it could do was swing aimlessly to and fro.

Unable to stop the need to quell his growing curiousity, he slowly turned around, the torch turning with him, it's light illuminating the mysterious shape that hung outside their window.

Danny saw it, and screamed.

* * *

Stupid black out. It was typical that the one night she would get some peace, the power would shut down. At least they still had relatively warm pizza and the prospect of shadow games to keep them occupied. 

Rummaging through the drawers in her bedroom, Sam picked out a torch and went on the search for some candles and matches. It didn't take long, as she took several from her room, the bathroom, and then the single one that sat on Danny's desk. He said it acted as ambiance for his meditation. Sam strongly suspected that he just liked the satisying scent of burnt wood that it radiated.

She then took a small battery powered lantern to the bathroom, placing it atop the toilet. It nicely lit the green tiled washroom with a soft yellow glow, allowing anyone wishing to use it enough light to see by. Sam then proceeded to light three more candles, placing one on the ornamental table that sat in the corridor, one in her room, and then a final one in her brother's room. The overall effect was quite peaceful, and they received a plesant ambiance with an occasional waft of burnt wood coming from the open door of Danny's bedroom.

Pleased with her work, she smiled to herself in the dark, picking up the last of the candles and another torch before making her way back to the living room.

Picking up the candles seemed a pointless task to Sam when she dropped them in her haste to run to Danny's aid when he screamed. It was a scream that made her heart thump loudly in her chest. Her knuckles whitened in fear as they clasped her torch tightly.

"Danny! Danny, what's wrong? What's the…" She stopped as she skidded to a halt beside her brother, who immediately clung to his older sister, burying his head into her side.

His torch had shattered when he'd dropped it, and lay beside the abandoned slice of pizza on the floor. Yet that wasn't what Sam was staring at in horror. It was the _thing_ that hung outside her window. The thing that had made her brother scream; and it was taking all her will power to stop herself from doing the same.

Sam could feel her brother shaking as he held onto her side, and placed her own unsteady arm around him, holding him protectively against her. Cursing inwardly at her own cowardice, she swallowed her fears, and glared at the threat that had made her breathing turn shallow and her legs turn to jelly.

Hanging by a rope outside her window was a body.

Sam guessed it was dead by the lack of movement, but had not been dead for long, due to the clean, but sodden clothing. Her assumption was confirmed as she soon noticed blood staining the collar of the white shirt it wore.

She shook her head. She'd seen bodies before; it wasn't that that had scared her. It made her sick of course, and the pure sight was horrific, but the fear she felt wasn't because it was a dead body.

Sitting on the face of the unknown corpse was a mask, covering the features of the male. It was by far no ordinary mask, and the creeps behind it had obviously taken their time in making it, relishing in the panic they knew it would bring.

The mask was of her older brother, Ben. Almost a perfect portrait, Sam could've sworn it was a photograph, and a recent one at that. It was a smiling representation, which made it all the worse to look at; a smiling picture of her brother on that of a dead John Doe. It sent disgusted shivers through her spine.

Then, hung around the neck of the carcass on a laminated placard, a portentous message sat, waiting to be read.

'_We found him._

_Now we've found you._'

Sam had to read this over and over again. She just refused to believe it. If her brother was truly gone, she would feel it. Wouldn't she? After all, they'd been so close, even through all the arguments.

Swallowing hard, she shook her head, banishing the risk of tears; banishing her darkest fear.

This time, she thought it would be different. This time, she thought that _they_ would never be able to find them. This time, she thought she would be happy.

Obviously not. Life just didn't flow like that, if it flowed at all.

Sighing shakily with a build up of fear, anger, regret, and sorrow, she turned, gently pushing Danny off her and taking him by the hand, silently dragging him to his room.

"Take you're travelling bag, pack only the necessities, and pack quickly," Sam told him, not daring to look down at her younger brother for fear of what he might see in her eyes.

Danny knew it would come to that, fleeing once more to an unknown area where he would have to make new friends, start a new school, and begin a whole new life. Yet this time, he dare not make any arguments, seeing what awaited him if he did not leave. He flew around his room in a mad dash, grabbing clothes, pictures and other items he cherished.

Sam did the same, but she first returned to the living room. Unceremoniously ripping up the corner of carpet, she pulled off a loose floorboard and grappled for a large oblong metal container. Kneeling, Sam fiddled quickly with the clasp, opening the box to reveal all of her most cherished possessions. Pulling out the photo album, the small box of jewellery, the martial clothing, her brother's Jutte and her duel swords, she stuffed them in her recently retrieved duffel bag before tying her belt around her shoulder and hooking the sheathed weapons onto her back.

Standing up once more, she took a fleeting glance at the corpse that still swung outside her window, before running to her bedroom and stuffing her bag full with clothing, a spare torch, her purse and some needed toiletries.

As she finished filling her duffel bag with those items, she felt a small icy chill run through her body. Slowly, she let her torch wander the room. Noticing nothing out of the ordinary, she took another sweep just to make sure. After all, she didn't want to make any mistakes. This time, a single error could cost her her life.

That's when, from the small window, a loud crack of thunder and flash of lightening lighted the new body that hung from a rope teasingly outside. It made her jump so high she thought she would run her head through her ceiling.

"Fucks sake," she muttered grimly to herself.

This time, it was a mask of her younger brother on that of a small boy being bombarded by the rain. It made her sick to the stomach that _they_ would go to so much trouble just to get to her and her family.

There was a new note hanging on a placard this time.

'_You can run,_

_But you can never hide_.'

Shaking her head disbelievingly, she backed up, tearing her focus away from the threatening corpse and back to the escape at hand, her throat turning dry and her jaw clenched. She reached out to the brass handle of her door, and turned it.

Something crawled up her hand as it hovered on the door handle. Something was moving all over her skin, making it prickle and shudder in revulsion.

She shook her hand peevishly, ridding herself of whatever it was when she felt the same sensation on her shoulder. It was then she brought the torch up to see exactly what it was.

Spiders. Dozens of spiders were crawling all around her, over her shoes, up her legs, along her shoulders and bag, _across her door_- her only escape route.

The teen couldn't even scream. She couldn't move. Breathing heavily through her nose, for fear that if she opened her mouth one would crawl inside, Sam tried to think of something, _anything_ that she could do. But her mind had gone completely blank. All she could think of were the spiders, what they would do, how they were crawling, their eight legs and fangs. She didn't even know if they were poisonous.

Her fear was totally and completely irrational, and she knew it, yet she couldn't help it. Spiders were her one greatest phobia, her Achilles heel if you will. Everything about them repulsed her. From their hairy eight legs, to their numerous eyes.

That was when she knew why they were there. This was a test. _They_ were pushing her to her limits, seeing how far she would jump before she would fall. And _they_ were enjoying every minute of her panic.

It was exactly this thought that finally forced her into action. Narrowing her eyes, she shook her body free of the creepy crawlies, lunging for the door and twisting the handle ferociously. Sam then flew through the door before slamming it shut behind her, hoping that none of the buggers had followed her through. Noticing one on her bag, she flicked it to the floor before stamping on it with a dark satisfaction at the crunch it made under her shoe.

Running her own ordeal out of her mind with a pointed stick, she focused back on the task at hand: getting herself and Danny out of New York, and possibly out of the country.

She knew this meant leaving her only blood relatives, and her new family, but it was the only way to keep them, herself and her brother safe. It pained her, but she knew that eventually everyone would move on. People always did.

"Danny, hurry up, we want to get out…" Sam began, marching into Danny's room with an air of purpose and determination.

He wasn't there. She couldn't see him. Panicking, she ran around the room, and finally found him hunched into a corner, whimpering with his packed bag clutched protectively to his chest.

"Dammit Danny, you scared the shit out of me," Sam scorned lightly, cupping his cheek in her hand as she knelt down beside him, bringing his eyes to meet hers.

"Sammy," the nine year old whimpered, launching himself into her arms and seizing her tightly, as if when he let go she would disappear.

"What's gotten into you? I said to pack quickly," Sam told him irritably, surprised by this sudden onslaught of affection, yet relishing in the close loving touch of her younger sibling.

As Danny pulled away, it looked as if he was trying to tell her something, but couldn't quite make out the words, so pointed to his window instead.

Sam knew before she turned round what it would be.

She hated it when she was right.

Hanging outside was another body, this one female, her clothes torn and stained with blood. It made her grimace as she made herself look at the mask that sat over the face of the Jane Doe. Looking back at her was herself, once more a smiling representation. Hung round the corpses neck was another message.

"_No point in denying it. _

_There's no escape!" _

Okay, that was brilliant. Now on top of everything she had to deal with, there was a blatant death threat hanging outside her brother's window. Shaking her head, she turned back to Danny.

"Have you packed everything?" When she received a solemn nod in reply, she stood up, taking her brothers hand gruffly in hers and pulling him to his feet.

Danny mimicked his older sister in the way she hung her bag by swinging it over his shoulder and securing it around his waist. It was comfortable, and secure. It made Danny wonder why she was so prepared; it was as if just getting out of the apartment was going to be a life threatening problem. The swords that hung across his sisters back regrettably confirmed his suspicions.

Together they marched immediately to the front door, the first and most obvious escape route, but also the easiest. Sam tried the door handle once, and it wouldn't open. She tried it again, more purposefully this time. The third time made her snap and she began to seemingly throttle the door and beat it to death with her fists.

"Open you fucking piece of useless junk!" She yelled at it, shaking the door fiercely. "Why won't you open?"

When yelling at it didn't work, Sam tried to bust the door down by taking a running slam into it with her shoulder. Then, when it still wouldn't budge, she tried kicking it. If she had dynamite, she would've used that too.

"For the love of all that is good on this earth, open the damn door!" The teen yelled, reverting once more to bashing it aimlessly with her fists, hoping one of the neighbours would hear her desperate plea.

Choking back a singular sob, she stepped away, calming down and taking Danny's hand once more in her own. She was shaking now, and her little brother could tell.

The fact that Sam was scared made Danny absolutely terrified. He'd never seen her that scared before; nor for that matter, had he ever seen her pointlessly beat a block of wood senseless. The fact that her hand now shakily held his made him stare at her with worry.

Their plan B was the fire escape window that the first body hung outside of. Stepping into the living room, Sam shined the torch, double checking to see if the body had been removed. Unfortunately, it had not, and stood in their path to freedom. That is, if they could get the window open.

"Please, if there is a god, let this window be open," She whispered, wandering to the pain of glass and tugging at it forcefully.

"There is no god," Sam whimpered in defeat, resting her head upon the unmoving glass, closing her eyes and willing it all just to be a realistic nightmare.

When she opened her eyes and still saw the John Doe swinging outside her window, she groaned and decided to try opening it once more. She attempted to open it from every angle she could, but the glass refused to move. After that, Sam even tried to smash it with a lampshade, but only succeeded in breaking the lampshade and sending splintering china everywhere, a piece of which slashed her cheek.

Cursing loudly, she threw the broken lamp onto the sofa and brought out her swords. Glaring dangerously at the window as she felt a warm trickle of blood fall down her cheek, she slashed at the glass with a terrific cry.

Wincing at the screeching sound, she pulled away sharply, letting her weapons fall to her sides as she gazed upon the minimal damage she had done to the window. Growling at the pathetic scratch, she sheathed her swords and curled up a fist, the thought of attempting to punch through the glass was a tempting one. But she knew if her duel swords could not shatter the window, her fist wouldn't.

"This is stupidly hopeless," Sam whispered as she stared unseeingly at the corpse that hung outside, being pummelled by the constant rain.

'_That's right, just give in. You know you can't win. It'll be easier if you lie down and accept your fate. You were never going to triumph, you were always going to loose.'_

At the sound of the voice, Sam wheeled around in surprise, desperately searching for its source. It was the same cold voice she'd heard before, the voice of the laughter, and it seemed Danny had recognised it too.

"Why can't you just leave us alone? Haven't you done enough? We've never done _anything_ to you!" Sam hollered into the darkness.

'_Why, the job is not yet finished._'

That was all she received in reply before an echoing chorus of malicious laughter turned her blood cold.

"C…C…Coward!" Danny squeaked defiantly at the dieing laughter, his eyes awash with fear as he stood close to Sam, seeking her comfort and guidance.

'_Coward, I am not._'

A screaming face launched itself at them from out of the darkness, making both Jones' scream and cower in their place. Its gleaming heartless red eyes laughed silently at them as the cheshire-cat grin taunted them of nightmares passed. Sam's arms wrapped protectively around her younger brother as they crouched low, feeling the eyes she'd seen so many times in her nightmares burning through her soul.

'_But it seems _you_ are!_'

An on-chore of the earlier malicious laughter greeted the unwilling ears of the two siblings that trembled on the floor. Neither dared open their eyes, because neither wanted to accept that what they were experiencing was reality. Both preferred to kneel there, convincing themselves it was all just a really, really bad dream.

A bad dream, however, would have been an escape both participants in the living nightmare would have been willing take. Anything was better than the reality they currently had to suffer through.

Taking the silence as a sign it may now be safe to emerge, Sam brought her head up and opened her eyes to look about her. There was no-one there; there was just deafening silence. The body still hung ominously outside, and the broken lamp still lay strewn across the sofa, and her cheek still bled from where she'd knocked the congealing blood.

Sam's hand blindly searched for the torch she'd let go of when she'd cuddled Danny protectively against the ghostly ambush. Feeling something torch-esque, she wrapped her hand around it and flicked the switch, breathing a sigh of relief when the light once more shed a soft comforting glow on the room.

Seeing the light, Danny straightened, and took a fleeting glance about him. There was no one there. He was thankful; he didn't particularly want to see the owner of those eyes; those eyes that had haunted his dreams.

As Sam looked around the room, double checking for any signs of an intruder, her eyes caught the wall opposite them, the wall that was sitting beside the kitchen. Shining her torch curiously onto it, she clenched her jaw.

Written in dripping red paint all across the wall was one clear message; _you can't run, you can't hide, we will always find you. _

Sam was rather insulted that it was red paint and not blood. It was as if _they_ couldn't be bothered; that her brother and herself were not worth the trouble. It wasn't the best thought to be having at that moment, but it was her instantaneous reaction to what she saw.

Shaking that stupid thought from her head, she looked around for anything that could help there escape. First of all, her eyes fell on the computer, but that was out of the question as they had no power. Then, her eyes fell on the phone.

Smiling in hope for the first time in what seemed a life time, she ran to the phone and picked it up hurriedly, already dialling familiar numbers. It was when she'd gotten half way through dialling the number that she realised there was no dialling tone.

Sam stood there for a moment, phone hovering beside her ear as her eyes slowly narrowed to a dangerous glare. Suddenly, she slammed the phone down and threw the whole appliance across the room at the fire escape window with a loud desperate cry.

It was not her day.

She felt physically sick with fear, and the familiar bubbling in her stomach told her that it wasn't just a feeling. Chucking the torch at Danny, she ran to the bathroom where the lantern still glowed softly.

Falling beside the toilet, she flipped the lid and proceeded to empty the contents of her stomach into the china bowl. Then, leaning her head against the upturned toilet seat, she groaned, her hand finding the flush and pulling it. Listening to the gurgle of the toilet, she tried to focus, tried to think of something.

As she leant against the toilet, she felt a hard curved object dig into her chest. Wincing, she fished around in her inner pocket and pulled an odd shaped looking shell.

It was green hope. That's what it was.

Sitting bolt upright, she slid it open with a triumphant laugh, prodding the closest speed dial for a turtle, any turtle. Holding the gorgeous shell cell to her ear, Sam pushed herself into a standing position and began to pace across the bathroom.

"Come on, come on. Pick up damn you. Please pick up," she bit her lip as she listened to the beautiful sound of a dialling tone, and then a ringing. It seemed to go on for ages, and ages, and she feared that the turtle she'd called would never pick up.

"Hello," a familiar purple clad turtle answered his phone.

The sound of his voice was enough to make Sam smile with joy, "Donny? Donny that you?"

"Sam? Yeah, it's me. What's up?"

"You have no idea how good your voice sounds to me right now," Sam replied thankfully, wiping a single tear from her eye.

"Okay… What's this all about?" A rather suspicious turtle asked.

"Okay, listen, I don't know how much time I've got. Me n Danny are in _big_ trouble. I think that someone…" She stopped suddenly, hearing the creak of a floorboard outside the washroom. Breathing shallowly, she drowned out the concerned turtle as she listened hard for any sounds that may tell her if anyone was outside.

"Sam? Sam? Sam, you still there? What's going on? Hey!"

"I thought I heard… no matter. I just need your help. We're trapped in our apartment…"

"Have you locked yourself in?"

"No, no, no. Someone's here. Someone's messing with us… there's… there are these… I…" She couldn't bring herself to say the word 'bodies'. Running a hand through her hand she paced the bathroom once more.

Yet as she turned, she finally noticed the shadows behind the shower curtain that stretched across the length of the bath. The large black blob was as long as the bath, and at least as wide. All in all, it looked rather foreboding.

Swallowing hard, she lowered the phone from her ear and stepped forward, curling her fingers around the edge of the plastic curtain and pulling it away.

She let out a small scream, dropping the shell cell, the device making a sickening crack as it met the floor. Yet she wasn't concerned about that at the moment, it was the image that now burned into her eyes that was concerning her.

_They_ knew. _They_ knew about the turtles. Just by knowing them, Sam had put her friends in danger. She didn't know how _they_ knew, but they did. And now she knew that they weren't going to stop at anything to get them.

Sitting in a bath of dark bloody water were four turtles, all of whom were skewered on their own sharp iron rod, and each of which had their own different coloured bandanas respective to those of the mutant turtles she knew and loved. And if that wasn't bad enough, a brown rat had been nailed to the tiled wall, its blood dripping down the light green marble. Shaking her head in disbelief, she dry heaved, running to the toilet in case her stomach once more decided to upturn itself.

She'd put them in so much danger. And now, she'd just asked them to come and help her. It was basically calling them up and inviting them to their own funerals. Banging her head repeatedly against the toilet seat, she scolded herself, "Stupid. Stupid. Stupid."

That's when the broken shell cell crept into her line of sight, and she groaned exasperatedly, rubbing the crook of her nose as her hand grappled for the cracked communications device. Donny was going to kill her if she wasn't already dead when they arrived… _if_ they arrived. She personally hoped, after seeing what lay in the bath, that they didn't turn up, but knew that was an idiotic thing to hope for.

Standing up with a moan, she took one last sickening look at the bath before turning sharply and walking out of the washroom, her whole body shaking with the effort. It was time to return to her brother and attempt to sort something, _anything_, out.

"Danny?" She called out, the weakness of her voice surprising her. Her eyes glinted as they darted around the room in search for her younger sibling, her feet treading softly and silently in fear of alerting anything that she might not want to.

"Danny where are you?" Her voice quivering with a growing sense of dread.

"Okay, this is so not funny. Danny?"

A tidal wave of panic swept over her as she began to run through every room looking for her brother. There was no way she was loosing another brother. Not a chance. If she had to search to the ends of the earth and beyond, she would.

"Danny?" She yelled, pushing open the bathroom door and immediately shutting it again. She didn't even bother to look in her room, there was no chance that she'd risk letting all those spiders out. "This is not good," she thought aloud.

Sam could feel the tears threatening the corners of her eyes as panic began to give way to despair. "Ryou!" She cried out desperately before her voice softened, "Please be okay."

"Sammy!" A voice cried out from the living room… a scared voice; a cry for help.

Sam didn't need to be called twice. The young woman moved faster than a speeding bullet as she ran to the living room, prepared for anything, and hands already reaching for her weapons.

Skidding to a halt in the sitting room, her eyes fell upon a cloaked figure standing beside the closed window. The window that she, try as she might, could not open earlier. And standing beside him was her younger brother, mouth covered by a gloved hand, eyes wide and glistening, pleading to his sister for help.

Narrowing her eyes and breathing shakily, Sam drew her weapons. "Leave him," was all she said, positioning herself in an offensive stance. "Let him go."

The mysterious figure laughed. It was a laugh that could turn a room to ice with one note. "Silly little child. I am your better and always will be," he had a voice like shattered glass; sharp and cold, yet the oriental accent told her this was not someone she wanted to mess with. "In what life could you ever beat me."

Sam growled dangerously, "Who are you to judge when you cower behind darkened clothes."

"It's not yet time," was all she received in reply, yet by the absence of cruel laughter she presumed she'd struck a nerve. This man did not like to be called a coward. "My master wishes to play his game."

A look of confusion and misunderstanding crossed Sam's face as she stared at the man holding her brother. What was he on about? What could he possibly do? They had already taken away all her family…

"Let him go," She repeated forcefully, a glint of fear in her eyes.

"Tut, tut," the male drawled from behind his mask. "That's not how we play the game now, is it." He paused, letting what he said settle in before continuing.

"You know the rules."

At that, the man in black crashed the hilt of his knife into the back of Danny's head, and caught him in his arms as the eyes of the young boy fluttered closed into unconsciousness.

"Don't you dare! I swear, let him go!" Sam screamed, leaping towards the male, swords swinging dangerously.

"He dies!" The man replied, roughly grabbing the young boy's hair and revealing his neck, sticking the tanto to his throat.

Sam stopped immediately, her swords staying raised, but her body unmoving apart from her angered heavy breathing. "You harm a single hair on his head and I'll…" she hissed dangerously.

"Don't worry about that," the male interrupted, and Sam could've sworn that he was smiling spitefully even though his face was masked. It was then that the male slung Danny over his shoulders and bowed mockingly towards the young woman.

"Where are you going? Why are you taking my brother? I swear…" but Sam never got to finish her threat, as the trained male flew through the unopened window and out into the cold wet night.

It left Sam gaping at the closed window. The man had just gone straight through it, without breaking or opening it. She knew she was dealing with some powerful people now, but that didn't matter. Not at the moment.

What did matter was that she'd once more failed to save her brother. Once more, he'd been in danger and she couldn't do a single thing to stop it. It took a moment for it to sink in, but when it did, she ran to the window and began to pound it with her fists.

"Come back! You coward," she screamed, angry tears rolling down her cheeks. "Bring my brother back you fucking coward! Bring him back!"

After a few minutes of the window getting a superior beating, Sam tired, and slunk off to the opposite wall, where she slid down to the floor, knees hugged to her chest, tears streaming down her face. She had been beaten…

* * *

**A/n**: Don't kill me… lol. Love to read reviews, give a desperate writer her will power to continue writing. 


	8. Chapter 8

**A/n**: The summary for this story is constantly changing because the story is. I keep thinking up better plot lines, so that's why the 'no pairings' thing has been taken out because I was planning a sequel… but I don't know now, hehehe. Swearing will be kept minimal throughout my chapters from now on. Hope that clears the minors up!  
(Edit: Only some minor changes)

I do not own the TMNT…God damn it.

_- __Sometimes, all you need is someone to hold you and tell you everything is going to be okay..__. -_

Donatello was always in two minds about meditation. On the one hand, it allowed him time to relax and think his projects through clearly, yet, on the other hand, it was time not spent working on those said projects. Sometimes the incense became too much, or Sensei used a particular scent that made his nose tickle, and he just couldn't concentrate. All in all, he didn't not like meditation, yet he didn't like it either.

Sitting there in the lotus position also seemed to be particularly uncomfortable that evening. Especially after finishing the pizza Mikey had brought back after dropping Danny off. He was starting to get an awfully disconcerting numb feeling where his bottom met the floor, and he began to shuffle so a blood flow would return to it. Michelangelo also seemed to be feeling a similar uncomfortable numbness, as he could hear the youngest turtle fidget in his seat. Then again, when _didn't_ he hear Mikey fidget. The orange clad turtle seemed to have endless reserves of energy.

Not willing to even try to meditate anymore, Donnie let his mind wander to his latest scheme. He was trying to convert an old toy flying helicopter into a working piece of spy equipment. It'd be a good idea, he thought, to have a fully functioning transportable reconnaissance spy camera, or turtle cam as he was going to call it.

As his blueprints slowly ran through his mind, and he made mental changes with a non-existent pencil, he distinctly heard the sound of a shell cell. Rolling his eyes, he opened his right eye a smidge, trying to discern the source of the ringing. It was then he noticed his brothers and his sensei all looking towards him.

He groaned inwardly. He'd forgotten to leave it in his room when meditation started. Smiling sheepishly, he pushed himself off the floor, thankful for the most part that he had an excuse to stretch his legs.

Donatello fished the shell cell from his belt and wandered to the other side of the room, sliding the communications device open with a resigned sigh.

"Hello," He answered politely.

"Donnie? Donnie, that you?" A familiar female voice asked.

_Who else is it going to be?_ "Sam? Yeah, it's me. What's up?" He asked, trying to get to the source of the call sooner rather than later. Master Splinter was giving him some odd looks.

"You have no idea how good your voice sounds to me right now," she replied, her voice sounding rather stretched.

It was an odd comment to say the least, one he wasn't expecting to receive off Sam. "Okay… What's this all about?" He asked suspiciously, a sense of foreboding creeping up behind him like a shadow.

"Okay, listen, I don't know how much time I've got. Me n Danny are in _big_ trouble. I think that someone…"

That's when she stopped. Donnie had the distinct feeling that she didn't just stop for the sake of it. "Sam? Sam? Sam, you still there? What's going on? Hey!" He asked loudly, glancing at the screen to see if they had been disconnected.

"I thought I heard… no matter. I just need your help. We're trapped in our apartment…"

This was not what Donnie wanted to hear. What he wanted to hear was 'oh, it was just Danny watching the telly, no problem, everything's fine'. Of course, life wasn't that simple.

"Have you locked yourself in?" He asked, almost slapping his forehead. Stupid thing to ask, of course she wouldn't have. His nerves didn't usually get the better of him like that. It was definitely more of a Michelangelo comment.

"No, no, no. Someone's here. Someone's messing with us… there's… there are these… I…"

Once more, the young woman stopped talking. This time, it certainly didn't seem chosen. Listening down the shell cell, Donnie once more had to double check he hadn't been cut off.

"Sam, what's going on? Are you okay? Hey? Sam?" He was starting to get desperate now, and worry wrapped itself around him like an itchy blanket.

That's when a muffled scream shot down the shell cell, making him wince before he started to almost shout to Sam through the communications device. "Sam! Sammy? What's happening? Sam!" The phone then made an odd monotone note, signalling the end of the call.

Donatello looked at the shell cell with a small sense of fear as he slid it shut, tucking it back in his belt. Stroking his chin in thought, he turned back to his brothers, his forehead creased with worry.

That's when he realised that his family had all been listening into his part of the conversation, and had all decided to stand, looking at him inquisitively.

"What the shell was that all about?" Raph asked gruffly, yet his furrowed brow spoke of concern for his female friend.

"I think Sam's in trouble. Big trouble. Her phone cut out before she could tell me specifics, but from the broken conversation and the scream, I'm pretty much guessing she needs our help," Donatello filled in his family, glancing once more at the shell cell tucked safely away in his belt, half hoping Sam would call again to tell him it was all a joke.

"What are we still doing here then?" Raph cried incredulously, ready to go by himself if he had to.

"Slow down Raph," Leo stated quickly. "Let's get ourselves sorted, and we'll meet out the front in two minutes."

"Be careful my sons. Something does not feel right," Master Splinter warned, his brow crumpled in distress. Something from his meditation had disturbed him greatly. Forewarning shadows of death and sorrow lingered in the corners of his mind.

* * *

"Something's off," Leo stated, narrowing his eyes down the darkened street that Sam's apartment sat on, squinting through the lashing rain. 

"I hear ya bro," Raph replied, looking directly at Sam's apartment that sat on the penultimate floor of the high rise building. The same odd feeling ran through his spine as he was sure ran through his brother's. That ominous worry that made you fear for the safety of your friends.

"You're telling me. _I'm_ even getting the heebie jeebies," Mikey shuddered involuntarily, glancing worriedly at his older brother's.

Donatello stayed silent, the phone call he'd had earlier still running through his mind, surfacing many questions. Who had threatened their friends? Why was Sam so scared? What exactly was going on? The young turtle needed answers, and he needed to find his friends safe.

The four brothers moved across the rooftops, sticking to the shadows, jumping the gaps that separated each building with acrobatic ease. The closer they got, the more each one felt the icy aura that surrounded Sam's apartment building.

Suddenly, one of Donatellos many gadgets started to bleep incessantly. Fishing it out of his bag, the purple clad turtle took note of the readings and translated them for his brothers, "There seems to be a large amount of concentrated energy surrounding Sam's apartment. It's like nothing I've ever seen before! Amazing…"

"Enough with the techno-geek awe Don," Raph scowled lightly, looking towards the apartment in question with a hard stare. He could feel something wrong, he didn't need to be told, and hoped they weren't too late.

"What we need to know is, is it dangerous?" Leo asked his intellectual brother.

"By the looks of it, I wouldn't think so, though I can't be entirely sure until further analysis," Donatello answered, returning his gadget to his bag.

"That's going to have to wait," Leo spoke decisively as they landed on the rooftop of the stated apartment block. "Be careful, we don't know what's going to happen."

Each turtle wandered to the edge and stared down the stairs that ran the length of the building, until their eyes reached the second level down…

"Hey, what's this?" Mikey wondered aloud, noticing a rope hanging over the edge, tied onto a small vent like appendage that jutted from the roof. He tugged on it gingerly, noticing that it did in fact have a weighty object on the end. There were two more of these ropes tied to similar objects around that part of the roof.

"I think we're about to find out," Don replied, watching his two eldest brothers scale the stairs expertly, and being over taken by his younger brother.

"Eep!" Mikey screamed girlishly, as he came face to face with a corpse hanging by the rope he'd tugged on earlier, being the first one at the scene. Backing away rather quickly, he almost fell off the side of the stairs if it wasn't for Raph, who whacked him upside the head for his stupidity.

"You know, I take it back. I don't want to know what it is," Mikey shook his head, grimacing at the mere sight of the swaying body.

"It's an older male," Leo calmed everyone's worries, cutting the body down and laying it carefully on the stairs so they could better see it. Donny and he knelt down beside it, the blue clad turtle removing the mask and examining it while the purple clad turtle checked the vital signs.

"Our John Doe is dead, and has been for a while," Donnie stated, standing once more with a grim frown. "We're dealing with some sick folk."

"This is a picture of Sam's older brother, I recognise it from one of her photos," Leo stated, showing the photo to his brothers.

"Hey, there's a message too," Raph exclaimed, kneeling and removing the laminated placard from the body's neck. Reading it, he scowled and passed it to Leo. "It ain't promising."

Michelangelo suddenly had a sickening thought as he read the message, "Hey, there were two more of these ropes… you don't think…?"

The other three turtles glanced at each other, worry written across each of their faces. None of them wanted to say it, none of them wanted to even suggest that Danny and Sam might be dead.

"Let's get in the apartment first," Leo decided, turning back to the living room window. Putting his hands to the glass, he peered through, but all he could see was darkness. Not even a distinguishing shadow was noticeable.

Hooking his fingers underneath the window, Leo tried to pull it up with brute force only. But the pane of glass wouldn't budge. Stepping back with a thoughtful stroking of his chin, he motioned for Raph to try levering the window open with his Sai's.

Nodding with a sense of purpose, Raph walked forward, twirling his Sai expertly before plunging them into the window, and with a grunt, he pushed, levering the window open. At first, it looked as if his efforts were failing, but through sheer determination, and the need to find his friend, Raph managed to get through, the window flying open and cracking at the force he'd used.

Leonardo looked appreciatively at his brother as he stepped over the ledge and into the apartment, a sudden chill shooting through his spine. His hands instinctively went to his Katana, but he lowered his hands as he realised there was no immediate threat, just a lingering sense of fear.

"It's clear, come on," He hissed to his brothers, who then followed him through, each mimicking their older brother; shuddering as they stepped through.

Mikey had the sudden strange feeling that they were being watched from somewhere, and glared into the darkness, trying to figure out where this feeling was coming from. He did, however, have sense to duck as a glass bottle flew over his head, uttering a girly scream as he moved out of the line of fire.

"Who are you? Show yourselves? Come to finish me off have you?" A snarl came from the darkness and a distinct sound of metal on metal as weapons were drawn.

Raph drew his weapons almost immediately, but raised an eyebrow into the gloom, the snarl being a familiar one, "Sam? That you?"

"Guys?" She replied carefully, stepping forward into the half light on unsteady legs, glaring suspiciously at them. "That really you?"

"Yeah it's us," Raph replied, relaxing slightly and taking a step towards her. But she flinched, and took a step away. The turtle didn't understand, and his eyes pleaded with hers through the shadows to believe them. "Trust me."

"Sammy, what happened to you? Where's Danny?" Leo asked, stepping to stand beside his temperamental brother.

Sam watched the four shelled figures from the safety of the dark, trying to decide whether they were merely illusions, designed to lull her into a false sense of security, or the real thing. Keeping her weapons drawn for the time being, she took another hesitant step towards them, fresh tears threatening to drown her eyes.

"You saw the John doe?" She swallowed hard, not answering the questions that were directed at her.

"We saw him," Donnie answered, his eyes brimming with concern.

"You see the other two?" She asked carefully, taking a skittish glance towards where she knew they hung.

Donnie shook his head, "Mikey found the ropes but we haven't seen them."

Pausing, Sam finally sheathed her weapons, but didn't approach the four reptiles, just in case. "How'd you get in?"

"Through the window, I had to force it open. It was shut tight," Raph answered, placing his own Sai back in his belt, following the young woman's gaze to the window before turning back.

Sam hesitantly took the steps to the window, passed the turtle's. Slowly, she outstretched a timid hand, pressing the palm against the cracked glass. She didn't understand. Nothing had worked for her earlier when she'd tried to open it, yet when Raph had tried, the glass had even cracked. Glaring at the window, she took her hand away, curling it into a fist before withdrawing it and crashing it straight through the pane of glass.

It was a relief to feel the physical pain; it took away the sick feeling in her chest, the lingering sense of guilt and anguish. She could feel the blood begin to flow from the gashes the glass had caused, and was sure there were small shards still embedded in her skin. But she'd be damned if that window would close on her again.

She stood there for a long while, just staring out of the window out onto the streets, not really seeing anything that was out there. Yet, she could feel the worried stares she was getting from her four friends. Yes, they were her friends, they weren't illusions, she was sure of that now. It was the only thing she _was_ sure of…

"_They_ took him," she choked, breaking the silence as she glanced at the four brothers' through her peripheral vision, the tears that had begun to fall glinting in what light existed in her darkened world. "_They_ took him… and…and I did nothing."

Her words were poison to her; she spat them out as if just speaking it would cause dishonour. A tentative green hand reached out and found her shoulder, the sudden movement making her jump slightly, but she did not pull away. In fact, she looked up to meet the eyes of Raphael, her own brimming with unspoken words that fell in small droplets down her cheeks, relishing in the comfort of his presence.

"I can't loose him," Sam shook her head, averting her gaze to the floor as she closed her eyes, not wanting the older turtle to see the pain she felt inside.

As she did so, she felt him pick up her wounded hand, slowly and softly removing the shards of glass to the best of his ability before wrapping the bloody appendage in a piece of cloth he had found. The turtle did it all so gently, Sam was amazed and felt herself lift her glazed eyes back up to Raph, watching him watch her.

"We'll find him," he told her, his words unwavering, and as steady as rock.

Sam almost thanked him, when she remembered the horrific image sitting in her washroom. Shaking her head, fresh tears threatened to fall. "I can't ask you to help, it's my fight. You're in enough danger as it is," she said regrettably, unwillingly pulling away from Raphs gentle touch.

"What do you mean?" Leo asked, stepping towards the young woman with a questioning stare.

"_They_ know," Sam said fearfully, staring back at the blue clad turtle. "Look in the bathroom…"

Leo led the way to the bathroom, Mikey, Donny and Raph following him. Just a few moments later, the youngest turtle bolted from the bathroom and to the kitchen sink where he proceeded to empty his stomach. The rest of the family group followed soon after, each looking a decidedly paler shade of green, though how she could tell in the gloom Sam did not know.

"I reiterate, we're dealing with some sick people," Donatello stated, taking one fleeting glance back at the bathroom and shuddering in disgust.

"Out of all the threats before, that's a new one," Leo uttered coldly, thinking of who might've done the sickening deed. Certainly someone that they'd never faced before. The Shredder definitely wouldn't have bothered, and Bishop would rather dissect them.

"When I find these creeps, they're gonna wish they'd never been born," Raph growled dangerously, cracking his knuckles.

Meanwhile, Sam stood over the youngest of the four in a motherly fashion. "Here," she said, filling up a glass of water and passing it to the orange clad turtle as he still stood bent over the sink.

Sam sat on the edge of the counter top, her eyes staring unseeingly at the message strewn across the wall in red paint. The mere presence of the turtles had seemingly calmed her, but the feelings were all still there - the guilt, the sorrow, the anger and the fear; all bubbling beneath the surface. It was enough to drive anyone crazy, her wounded hand demonstrating that fact. The bandage was beginning to become stained with her blood, but it wasn't too bad, just a dull throb now. Raphael had done a decent job patching it up.

"Hey, let's get you back to the lair. It's doing none of us any good sticking around here," Leo decided, standing beside Sam and placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, glancing towards Michelangelo who had seemed to gain control over his gut.

"I so second that," The youngest turtle piped up, rubbing his stomach gingerly.

The young woman was quiet for a moment, not meeting the eyes of any of the four brothers as she thought it through. The offer was definitely tempting, but she just wanted to find her brother, and if she stayed with them, she'd just be a liability. They'd already done so much for her.

Raph seemed to know what she was thinking and stepped forward defiantly, "There ain't no if, ands or buts. What with these freaks after you, we ain't leaving you alone."

Looking at the turtle who spoke so boldly, she couldn't help but be slightly thankful. She knew she would never get through it alone, and was grateful that her friends were so willing to help her, even though just knowing her put them in danger. "Thank you," she replied quietly.

"I'll go grab some stuff from your room and…" Donnie began before he was suddenly interrupted by Sam.

"No!" She exclaimed, moving to stop Donatello. "Don't… you really don't want to do that."

His confused look made her squirm. "Lot of spiders," she replied with a shrug and an absent twiddling of her bandage. "I got a bag packed anyway," she told him, picking up the duffel bag by her feet and swinging it over her back, securing it carefully.

"Okay, sooner we get going the better," Leo said quickly, taking a worried glance at Sam. She seemed to have calmed a lot since they'd found her, but the turtle new it was just a temporary façade. The fact she'd already had a bag packed told him she was going to run. But run from what?

"I'm going to grab some samples, and sort out our dead friends," Donnie told his eldest brother, already removing a couple of instruments from his bag. "The more we know the better, and I don't feel right leaving them hanging outside this apartment."

At this, Sam shot a grateful look at the turtle. He was doing her a huge favour, and she made a mental note to thank him big time. The bodies should be taken care of properly; they should be found and their families' told of their loss. If Donnie hadn't have volunteered, Sam would've stayed and done it herself.

"I'll stay and help you. Raph, Mikey, take Sam home, and be careful," Leo instructed, staring mainly at the second eldest. "Once you're back at the lair, stay there. We'll catch you up in an hour and a half, at the latest."

Mikey went out the broken window first, giving the male John Doe and wide birth as he bounced passed before climbing the stairs to the roof. Sam followed soon after, taking a glance at the corpse with a shudder. She didn't know who he was, never seen him before in her life, but he was dead on her account. For all she knew, he could've had a wife, and kids. Now, he was gone; another victim slain by her family's enemies. Taking the stairs two at a time, the rain already drenching her clothes, she caught up with Michelangelo, longing for the guilt to leave.

"Oh, and Raph," Leo called after his brother before he stepped out of the window. "Look after Sam. Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." If he knew anything about their friend, it was that she was a lot like Raphael in temperament, and once she'd calmed down, she would attempt a lone rescue mission. That was something he really didn't want her doing.

"Don't worry, she's not leaving my sight," Raph replied before disappearing into the gloomy night, leaving Leo and Donnie to their work.

* * *

A/n: I promise, next chapter you will get answers! Don't kill me… 


	9. Chapter 9

A/n: Just wanna say a big thank you to all my reviewers. You all totally rule! And I hope this chapter gives you some answers. Tehe.

I do not own the TMNT. That honour is for Mirage, Peter Laird, and Kevin Eastman.

_- Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all. -_

Fear was an emotion that worried Michelangelo. True fear that meant you couldn't sleep without comfort, or escape the nightmares. _That_ fear was something that he felt, that ran through his entire being like a relentless poison. It was tearing him apart inside, yet his exterior, he knew, would still remain the happy-go-lucky façade that people always seemed to relate him to. And he would go along with it; he would joke and smile, and try to make everyone's day that little bit better, when in actual fact he was feeling the same as them.

Sometimes, he thought his brothers knew what was going on in his head. Donatello definitely had some inkling, as he caught those concerned glances and felt that comforting hand, longing just for that brief moment where he could break down and release his fears. And Raphael almost seemed to be on the same level. Yet his brother's happiness prevented him from doing so. Whilst Mikey knew his brother's were always there for him, burdening them with his darkest problems was something he could never do. With all their escapades, of course he would occasionally let loose, and would feel so much better for it afterwards. But he would then receive those looks from his older siblings; those pitiful concerned looks that continued to remind him that he was youngest.

Don't get the wrong idea, Michelangelo loved being the youngest. It always had its little perks, like his innocent charm, but he resented being treated like an idiot. That condescending attitude always made his blood boil. He wasn't stupid, and contrary to popular belief neither was he a naïve child.

That was his point. He deserved to know what exactly was going on, and he demanded answers silently with the odd hard questioning stare. He was sure everyone seemed to know something he didn't. For instance, where was Danny?

Shudders racked his body as he thought back to Sam's apartment. Even before they had reached it, he'd felt it. The aura around the building was wrong; it reeked of pain and fear. Being the most empathic one of the four turtles, he'd picked up on it long before his brother's, yet refused to acknowledge those odd feelings of anxiety and dread. Fear once more being the culprit.

An uncomfortable silence deafened the three companions as they leapt across rooftop after rooftop, sliding across and down buildings until they came to a manhole. Mikey hated those deafening silences; they always had an ominous air that told of unwelcome conversations yet to be. More than once the young turtle had attempted to break the silence, but every time he opened his mouth to say something he closed it almost simultaneously, and reverted back to listening to the rain pummel New York City.

It seemed to him as though the other two felt similarly to him, and also hated the silence, yet they seemed to relish in the fact that they could with-hold the looming threat of knowledge they had so far refused to learn. Sometimes, maybe it was better not to know.

Before he knew it, they were home, back to their place of solitude way beneath the busy streets of the big apple. A place where they were sure they could be safe, especially with the mega-tech update Donnie had done on the lair. It had been a complete re-vamp: cameras, lasers, heat detectors, motion detectors, night vision, knock out gas, and a few extra Donnie-specials. You name it, they had most of it.

Mikey's absent musings were interrupted, and he was dragged with an almighty wallop back into the present, or to be more specific, a smack upside the head from his older brother.

"Sam's stuff needs to go into the spare room, then make sure she has a shower to calm down and warm her up. I…We don't want her getting ill on top of everything," Raph told his youngest sibling, prodding Mikeys plastron to emphasise his order. "Grab some of our human clothing to wrap her in after. It's a lot warmer than anything she's brung I bet. I'm gonna give Splinter the four-one-one."

They both, at that, glanced quickly towards the human female standing in their living room, looking rather pale and restless. The congealed blood across her cheek smudged due to the rain, and her hair dripped dirty water across the floor along with her soaked clothing. What with the bandaged hand as well, it was safe to say Sam looked a right state.

The orange clad turtle took a look at his elder brother out of the corner of his eye. Michelangelo had noticed his slip of tongue, and found it strangely amusing. He'd have to bully Raph about it later, but for the moment there were certainly more pressing matters at hand. Nodding in understanding, the young turtle went to his duties.

Wandering up beside the teen girl, he placed a tentative hand on her shoulder. She jumped but turned to face him, flashing an apologetic smile. Mikey could see the hurt in her deep chocolate eyes, and it hurt him to see it. "Dude-ette, on orders from Mr Cheerful himself, I've been told to escort you to your room and make sure you grab a shower," he told her, trying to tempt a smile from her that wasn't full of apprehension. "Personally, I think a cup of hot chocolate would be so much better."

It worked; a small hint of a smile adorned her face before it disappeared behind a withdrawn façade once more. "Could do with one of those later," she told him after a moment's awkward silence, breaking the tension that had been building up since they'd left her apartment.

"Done and done," Mikey smiled, turning on his heels and taking her to the spare room, letting her dump her bag before directing her to the shower, just in case she'd forgotten where it was. "And, this being your lucky day, Raphs even letting you get into some of his clothes…" After saying this sentence, he realised how wrong it may have sounded to a human and chuckled, earning a cheeky half grin off the teen.

"Not like that, dirty woman," he retorted in a British accent. "Dragon breath says our human clothes would be warmer than anything you may have packed. I'd be careful putting them on though, might get lost… they're huge!"

"Thanks," she said, opening the door to the overly large wash room. The act of speech seemed to be rather pointless to her, so only said what was necessary, just in case she said something she shouldn't and let loose the demons locked in her mind.

"Hey, no worries. They don't usually get worn too often anyways," Mikey shrugged, leaning against the wall. "I'll leave them with a towel on the stool just inside the door. Happy showering dude-ette!"

Sam watched the young turtle leave as the door swung shut behind him. Turning with a frown, she finally managed to get a good look at herself in the broken mirror that hung on the turtle's washroom wall.

What she saw wasn't herself. It was just a ghost of herself, an empty shell of what she'd once been. All she saw now was a failure, a downcast image of herself with a wretched past, and a bleak future. She brought her bandaged hand up to her cheek, where she gingerly prodded at the recently scabbed gash. Just another reminder of how she'd failed to open the damn window to free herself and her brother from the horror within her apartment.

Then, unwrapping the bloodied cloth, she took a closer look at her hand. The skin was broken in more than several places, and some of it was still leaking the occasional drop of blood. Yet she saw no shards of glass; another task she would have to thank Raph for.

Leaving the bandage on the sink side, the young woman turned and walked to the shower cubicle, opening the door robotically and stepping into it. Her eyes didn't see the tap, but her hand found it and twisted it. The water almost immediately began to fall from the shower, down her frame through her already soaked clothes. It stung the open cuts on her hand, but it was a relief to feel the pain. She felt it begin to wash away the dirt, yet try as she might, she still felt unclean. Sam didn't even care that her wretched clothes still hung from her shaking form.

Staring through the droplets at the opposite wall, her salty tears mixed with the water as it was pulled by gravity to the floor. The reality of her situation had just begun to sink in, and all her demons flooded through the gates of her mind and swamped her thoughts. Holding her head in her hands, she slid to the tiled floor, pained sobs shook her body as she tried so hard to refuse fate; to deny the truth. But it didn't change matters; her brother was gone. He'd been taken from her. And she'd done nothing.

Sam had lost him.

* * *

What was Donnie doing moaning at him about his room being a tip? Raphs room was far worse. Mikey would definitely remember to point this out the next time his brother complained about the state of his room. He was surprised his brother could find anything. There were empty cans, weights, dirty towels, CD's and magazines all across the floor. The sheets were even crumpled and falling off the edge of his bed. Then again, so were his.

Luckily for him, April had washed a set of their human clothes just the week before, and had a hissy fit when Raph threw his on the floor. She'd stood there until he'd re-folded them put them in his wardrobe. Just like she stood there and watched Mikey put his away; like a surrogate Mother.

Pulling open the door, he peered through the gloom and plucked out a t-shirt and a jumper. Tucking them safely under his arm along with the pair of trousers he'd taken from his room, he bounced out of the Raph-cave and down the hallway, grabbing a large towel on the way. He'd figured that his trousers would suit Sam a lot more… plus they were made of _the_ softest cotton ever!

The washroom door was partially open when he got there. It never closed properly… he'd have to remind Donnie to fix it. As he neared it however, there seemed to be a strange sound that accompanied the pitter-patter of water. It was odd, as there was really nothing in the bathroom that made that kind of noise. It almost sounded as if someone was crying…

A small '_Oh_' formed on Michelangelo's beak as he silently pushed open the door, placing the clothes and the towel on the stool before clicking the door shut behind him. He looked around for the wet clothes of Sam's, yet noticed them nowhere in the room. Raising an eye ridge in confusion, he cautiously made his way towards the shower cubicle.

Placing a three fingered hand on the door softly, Mikey pushed at the wood, the door creaking open to reveal a dishevelled teen girl sitting on the tiled floor, hair falling around her hidden face as she sat still donned in her grubby clothes. Her body shook tremulously, and the occasional sob escaped her lips, floating painfully through the air to Mikeys eardrums.

The orange clad turtle shook his head sadly, taking further steps into the shower and withdrawing quickly. The water was freezing! "Cold ain't cool," he told Sam, turning the hot tap on, the warm water leaking through as the young turtle sat next to the distraught teen.

They sat in each others company, the silence reigning down comfortably between them, both enjoying the fact that they had someone there to be with. The warm water also acted as a calming agent, relaxing their muscles and thoughts, allowing Samantha to somewhat control herself.

"I lost him Mikey," Sam eventually choked out, lifting her head to look towards the turtle.

Michelangelo's eyes looked back at the teens watery ones, his bright blue irises close to letting loose the flood of tears that threatened to fall. He didn't really know what to say, and was afraid that if he began to speak he'd just begin to ramble and then the whole conversation would just de-rail, leaving him looking rather sheepish. So, he placed a hesitant hand on her shoulder, trying to stall for time.

"It weren't your fault," Mikey replied, his eyes staring with concern at the young woman. She'd been through so much and now she's had her brother taken from her. Mikey didn't know what he'd do if he truly lost one of his brothers. They were the only four of their kind, leading the half life of a hermit in the sewers of New York. And naturally, that made them closer than anything.

"I can't loose him. I can't…" Sam spluttered with distress, the tears constantly falling down her cheeks. "He's all I have…"

"Hey, that ain't true. You got us!" Mikey attempted to coax a smile from the teen. "Not that that's really much of an incentive. Raph isn't exactly joy of joys, Leo's a pain in the shell, and Donnie's a smart arse. Sensei's brilliant until you get one of his wise ancient lectures on the ways of boredom…" Okay, here he was, doing exactly what he said he'd try not to; ramble.

Though, as he looked to Sam, this prospect seemed to put a little spark back into her eyes, yet she still shook her head, "It's not that I don't love you guys… it's just… I…"

"I understand. He's your bro. I got three of them, remember?" Mikey smiled sadly, watching Sam carefully. "Listen to me. I may not be the great advice giving guru, but I know how you're feeling. We are going to get Danny back, no ifs, ands, or buts. It's going to happen. I mean, come on, what's a super hero without his side kick?"

It was this that finally got to Mikey, and he placed both his hands in his lap, clasping them tightly to try and force back the tears that threatened to fall. Danny was like a best friend and a surrogate little brother. He'd never had a little brother; it was nice. He had Raph, who was there whenever he needed someone to let loose with, terrorise Leo with, or generally act mischievous with. Yet, he was still his older brother. Danny offered a chance to actually become the older brother type figure, and Mikey had taken to it like a fish to water.

Sam saw that sad look in the turtle' eyes, and realised just how much Danny had really meant to the lot of them. "You wouldn't believe how excited he was about becoming Daring Danito," she told him softly. "He'd constantly go on about it at home… even transformed my favourite top into a mask. He said it was the perfect yellow colour."

They were both crying now, silent tears raining down there cheeks, mixing with the falling water from the shower. Both took comfort in the fact that they were with someone who could share their feelings with empathic compassion. And they both felt something else; a growing sense of purpose and determination; a flame that was resolute in its goal to conquer and claim what was rightfully theirs.

"We'll get him back, won't we Sam?" Mikey said, lifting his eyes to meet those of the young woman sitting beside him, no longer constricted by his emotions.

"We've got to," she replied quietly, her words flowing from her mouth with a desperate hope that her brother was okay.

* * *

Father and son talked deeply about the recent events, each voicing their fears and inner hypotheses about what may have been going on; and on who might've caused this. It had deeply disturbed Master Splinter to learn of the death threats, and the corpses that hung on ropes outside Samantha's apartment. It further caused him distress when he learned of Danny's abduction. His eyes had averted in sadness, staring at the sliver of floor between him and his son.

They then slipped onto the subject of rescuing Danny, but Master Splinter had abruptly stopped, telling his son that the need for planning will arise after they have all the information. As such, they would be waiting for Leonardo and Donatello to arrive home before any talking was to be done.

This left Raphael in an odd place. He wanted desperately to talk to Sam about what had happened, and he also wanted to be out there searching for Danny on the streets. Yet he knew he couldn't do either. Not yet.

So, the young turtle clad in red took a seat at the kitchen table, grabbing a pack of cards from a nearby drawer and started to play a distracted game of solitaire. Every so often, his gaze would glance upwards, his vantage point being in direct sight of the hallway and entrance, to look for his brothers; and for Sam.

Michelangelo had appeared some while after Raph had taken his seat, jumping down the steps whilst tying a fresh bandana around his head. His normal bright blue eyes were drawn and sorrowful; the spark that usually danced in them had disappeared behind a cloud of worry. Yet, as he closed the gap between himself and Raphael, a masked smile drew the corners of his lips to his cheeks, an attempt to conceal the pain that squirmed inside of him.

Raph wasn't stupid. Contrary to popular belief he was actually rather emotional most of the time, and not in the angry hit-the-first-thing-that-you-see kind of way, that's just how he dealt with the feelings. He knew his brothers well enough to know when something was bugging them. Leo would constantly train in the dojo, becoming Mr Perfect Ninja; Donnie would lock himself in his lab for days on end, and Mikey would become quieter and more secluded. _Or_, as his youngest sibling so demonstrated, put on an obviously fake attempt at being happy.

With his foot, the red clad turtle gently nudged the chair opposite him as a friendly invitation for his brother to take a seat with him, averting his eyes back to his lone game of cards.

The youngest turtle tentatively received the seat, turning his eyes to watch his older brother slowly lay a card upon another, flipping another one off the deck just to repeat the process again. He knew he was just trying to avoid a conversation by doing this, but he couldn't help it.

"If you put the ten of spades here, then you can move the nine of hearts there, so you can then put the final set onto the jack of clubs," Mikey rambled, his eyes searching his brother's cards.

Raph always knew Mikey had a keen eye, and followed his sibling's instructions with a grunt of thankful recognition before continuing to play by himself. "Something's bugging you," he stated simply, taking a short concerned glance towards his brother.

"Pot Kettle black," Mikey replied, propping his chin on his hand with an inward scolding roll of his eyes. '_Aw man, I said what I was supposed to think. Damn it'_. "I mean…aw shell," the young turtle rubbed his eyes with annoyance.

Raph snorted in amusement at his brother's slip of tongue, raising an eye ridge at the youngest turtle. "Go on then cheese ball, what's eating ya?"

"A mouse?" Mikey retorted with a cheeky half grin before it quickly faded, the turtles hands absently wringing each other as they lay on the table top.

"Enough with the side tracking Mikey," Raph stated irritably, pausing from his game to stare straight at the orange clad turtle questioningly.

"I'm not side tracking… I'm just…" Mikey knew before he even began that making excuses was not going to work in his favour, especially after the glare that his older sibling sent him. "I'm worried. I hate being worried. I feel like I'm turning into Leo," at this, an involuntary shudder ran through his body.

"And I'm scared Raph."

The red clad turtle's gaze softened as he stared upon his brother. Suddenly he seemed so small, so innocent, and so much younger. It struck a chord in Raphael that brought out the protective older brother in him. "Me too," He admitted unwillingly, the blue eyes of his younger brother rising to meet his.

"Don't you go telling no one I said that. Ruin my rep," Raph added after a moments peace, tempting a smile off his younger brother as he scooped up the cards off the table, sorting them into a neat pile in his hands.

Michelangelo smiled at his big brother when he admitted that he too was scared. It was one of those rare moments that Raph decided to become the inner softy they all knew existed, but rarely appeared. The feelings on Mikeys shoulders seemed to lift somewhat, knowing that he wasn't alone. "Can't ruin the macho exterior, right?" He teased.

"Exactly," Raph sent a small smile of gratitude towards his orange clad sibling, shuffling the cards expertly in his hands. "Snap?" The older turtle suggested, earning a gratuitous nod before he began to deal out the fifty-two worn playing cards between them.

"When do you think Don and Leo are gonna get back?" Mikey asked as Raph dealt the final card, picking up his hand and looking intently at his brother.

"Soon I hope. Their hour and a half limits almost up," he replied sullenly, glancing to the lair's front door in a vain attempt to will them through it at that instant. If there was one thing Raph didn't need, it was for his two brothers to go M.I.A. There was enough to deal with without having that added slice of stress.

Their game of snap continued in the way of silence, the occasional 'snap' and triumphant cry were the only sounds ringing through the large lair. It was a way to pass the time, and distract the two brothers from lingering on those ominous pessimistic thoughts that consumed even the best people. Yet soon the game passed with a victorious Michelangelo holding the fifty-two cards in his hand.

"Lucky game," Raph huffed, obviously in denial at his loss to his younger sibling.

"It's all skill bro," Mikey replied with a cheeky grin before he stood, walking round the table to the kitchen, handing the cards back to Raph on the way. "I promised Sam a hot chocolate, you want one?"

"That'd be great," the elder sibling replied, rubbing his eyes underneath his mask. The sudden promise of hot chocolate doing wonders to lift his spirit. If Raph was sure of anything at that moment, it was that Mikey made the best hot chocolate in the entire galaxy, and that he could really do with one of them. Raphael never knew when it had started, but he was a chocoholic; not that he'd admit it aloud. Give him a hot, doughy, double-chocolate-chocolate-chip cookie, and you could pretty much guarantee that he'd accept it.

"You think I should make enough for Leo and Don?" Mikey asked as an afterthought, leaning back out of the doorway.

"I guess you'd better, they can always reheat it if it goes cold. Put on some hot water for Sensei as well," He responded, leaning back in his chair, flashing a thanking glance towards his youngest brother.

The sounds of cups and pans alerted Raph to the beginnings of his hot chocolate, and knew the appetising smell of cocoa would soon follow, so allowed himself to drift off into his own thoughts and almost immediately wished he hadn't. His thoughts merely stirred locked emotions; he wanted vengeance, he wanted to hurt those that threatened his family and friends. It riled him so that he found himself toying with his sai, twirling a single blade expertly in his hand as his eyes unknowingly watched the door for the return of his brothers.

Finally, his intense staring had had the desired effect, and the door to the lair creaked open to let Leonardo and Donatello through, both looking highly disturbed and worn out.

"Bout time you two showed up," Raphael growled in relief, and although his voice was gruff, his eyes spoke of true concern. He didn't even realise he had stood until he sat down again.

"It took longer than we expected to move the bodies," Leo replied, wandering towards the kitchen with a thoughtful looking Donnie in tow. "But we put them somewhere where they'll be found and taken care of."

"And before you say anything, I removed the masks and the messages," Donnie told his red clad brother, removing his duffel bag and bo before taking a well deserved seat at the kitchen table. "I also analysed the energy that radiated from the apartment, and took samples from the rope, and the bathroom."

"What'd you find?" Raph urged him, watching Leo pace tiredly before turning back to Donnie.

"I think that's best left until everyone's here," Leo interrupted, stopping mid-pace and turning to his brother. "I think Sam and Master Splinter need to hear this as well."

"I'll tell you this though," Donnie said, twiddling his thumbs idly as thoughts raced through his head. "You know Sam told me not to go in her room due to a vast amount of spiders? Well, I decided to chance it, hoping to gain a specimen. But when I opened the door, there was nothing. Not even the slightest trace of a large amount of our eight-legged friends ever being there."

"Well, she wouldn't lie to us…" Raph stated, finding this fact highly alarming.

"That's not what I said. But to be sure that my theory is correct, I need to know exactly what happened," Donnie replied, staring at his brother with a worried gaze. "That hot chocolate?" he sniffed hungrily.

"Mikey's making some," Raph stated with a glance towards the kitchenette. "A hot drink might do you two some good," he teased, finally noticing how wet his brothers actually were. Apparently it was still raining outside.

"That and a couple of towels," Leo looked down upon himself with a dishevelled sigh. "I'll go get some," he told them before wandering towards the linen closet, returning soon after with two worn but clean towels that looked as if they had once been white.

Catching the towel that was tossed towards him, Donnie dabbed himself dry, removing his mask and wringing it out before stuffing it unceremoniously back over his skull. "How's Sam doing?"

"I wouldn't know. Mikey was looking after her while I was giving Sensei an update," the red clad turtle told his brother sheepishly. Truthfully, he didn't want to face his fears, so part of him was trying to avoid the young woman.

The brothers shared each others company in silence, taking solace in the simple fact that they all still had each other. They all shared the same thoughts, the same fears, and the same want for revenge. Yet, the worry was the one emotion that concerned them for the moment; the one that over ruled others. It washed over them like a relenting wave of icy water.

"I thought I heard some familiar voices," came the small female voice the brothers had been previously talking of.

The three turtles all turned to Sam, flashing her small smiles that told of their concern. To them she looked a lot…well, better. She'd cleaned up and donned some of Raph's and Mikey's overly large human clothes. It would almost look somewhat comical if not for the severity of the situation. The clothes hung limply off her frame, and she'd been forced to roll up the sleeves of her jacket and the bottoms of her navy trousers so she could walk.

Folding her arms almost protectively across her chest at their inquisitive stares, she made her way slowly to the table, pulling up a chair and taking a seat where she began to fiddle idly with the end of her sleeve.

"How're you doing?" Leo asked gently, his eyes watching Sam with a concern that made the young woman some-what uncomfortable.

She didn't want to answer him, because she didn't know the answer herself. In some ways, she was still trying to cling to her brother, hoping- no,_ knowing_ that he was okay. But in others she'd resigned herself to never seeing him again. Yet, anyway she looked at it, there was always that small inkling of dread.

She was saved the trouble of attempting to think of an answer by the inevitable arrival of Michelangelo, carrying a tray full of hot chocolate. "Five hot chocolates, ready and waiting my friends. T'is perfection in a cup," he flashed a small grin, laying the tray gingerly on the table.

The young turtle looked purposefully up at Sam, picking up a cup and handing it to her. Their eyes locked for a moment, reminiscent of the conversation that had earlier transpired in the shower. Sharing a small knowing empathic smile, Mikey took a seat opposite her and cradled his cup of hot coca, relishing the comforting warmth just as Sam was doing.

The young woman smiled appreciatively towards the youngest turtle, sinking into the chair after taking a large mouthful of the sweet liquid, letting the warmth run through her body in a soothing wave.

"Chocolate helps all of life's little problems," Mikey stated wisely after watching each brother also take a sip of hot chocolate, looks of gratitude washing over their tired faces.

Although Raph would never admit it aloud, he agreed with Mikey.

"Somehow I highly doubt that," Donny stated, even though he was currently nursing his hot chocolate with a loving hand.

"Never underestimate the power of chocolate my son," Master Splinter stated, his cane clicking along the stone floor as he made his way towards his four sons and their female companion, a sad smile upon his worn furry face.

The five friends blinked in surprise at the wizened rat. It was definitely something they never expected to hear the ninjitsu master say.

"There's some hot tea in the kitchen for you sensei," Mikey uttered, eyes still glistening with the small amazement and admiration he held for his father at those seven words.

"Thank you Michelangelo," his father tipped his head politely before heading towards the kitchen, disappearing behind the door.

"Wow…I have a whole new respect for Sensei," Mikey grinned, taking a large jovial sip at his hot chocolate, glad for the distraction his father had provided him with.

Raphael smiled at his youngest brother, glancing towards the kitchen where he could now hear his father shuffling around with cups and a teapot. Glancing down at his mug of the hot joy, he swirled the contents, watching the remaining remnants of the froth wash against the sides. Only half full…or already half empty. Depends on the way you look at it. He'd never really thought about it before, but now found himself musing on the subject.

Everyone seemed to have their own way of avoiding the topic that they all waited to discuss.

Sam hated the waiting. It was the worst part, teetering on the edge of an inevitable conversation you know you can never avoid. Dragging it out just seemed to make it all the worse. So, deciding that waiting was no longer an option, the young woman decided to dive right in and start it herself, "Did you take care of the bodies?" Her voice was distant, even to her, and sounded as delicate as a china doll. One slip and it could break.

Leo glanced at Donnie, noticing the lack of eye contact and closed body language from the female teen. She was as uncomfortable about this conversation as the brothers were. Taking a step forward, Leo drew a seat and placed himself beside his purple clad brother, gently putting his mug onto the table.

"Yeah, we did. We made sure that they were found and taken care of," the eldest told her softly.

Sam nodded appreciatively, "Thank you." She took a quick glance at the elder turtle, catching his gaze and flashing a half smile before averting her eyes once more to her mug. No one should've had to suffer as they did on her account… especially that poor boy. He'd barely begun to live; he'd had no chance to do right or wrong; he didn't deserve that end.

"We removed the masks and placards before. It'd be better for them not to be found with those," Donnie added, watching the small breath of relief Sam let escape her.

"I owe you much," she stated simply, nursing her hot chocolate gingerly in her cold hands. "I should've never gotten you involved…"

"Our choices in life shape our paths Miss Jones. It seems my sons and I were destined to help you in your plight," Master Splinter said, returning from the kitchen with a pot of hot tea and a china cup, both of which he placed upon the table before taking a seat.

Sam shook her head, "You're in more danger than you know Master. It's a lot worse than you can imagine…"

"Then help us to understand my dear. Tell us all you know so we can aid you," the aged rat asked, his eyes kind and caring, staring at Sam with a warmth that reminded her so much of her Grandfather.

"Whether you like it or not, we're involved now, and we're not letting you go through this alone," Raph said solidly, his gaze like stone; hard and determined. Yet the edges softened as they watched Sam, his protective instinct rising above others.

The eyes of the teen looked from one mutant to the next, weighing up her options. She definitely couldn't do this alone, but she didn't want to drag them any deeper into her mess… Yet they deserved the truth. They deserved to know who took Danny, and who threatened their very existence.

"The Kagemori family has for a long time been feuding with another family, the Hokkaido clan, who also have deep roots in Japan," she began, her eyes becoming distant as she immersed herself in the memories of her dreary past. "The cause has long since been forgotten, and no one knows why our families are still at war, but both are too stubborn to give in.

"Each family though, for a while, lived with a mutual respected dislike of each other, and we experienced a few years of peace. It was a delicate existence, and was soon shattered by the murder of the eldest son of the head Kagemori family, and the eldest daughter of the head Hokkaido family.

"Of course, each side immediately accused the other for their loss. Neither bothered to consider the facts… Some of the more passive members of my family convinced the head our clan to try and talk it out, but it ended in a duel, which finished in a stale mate, each side equally matched. Hokkaido wasn't content though; they made a vow that each member of the Kagemori family should suffer for what we apparently did to them."

"So you're being punished for something you didn't even have a hand in?" Donnie asked incredulously, paying rapt attention to her story with an air of disbelief.

"Basically," Sam sighed shakily, taking another sip of her hot chocolate, the sweet liquid almost at an end. "But because I'm in the blood line, I'm being targeted. They cannot rest until they've fulfilled their vow."

"What about your family in Japan?" Leo asked, almost not wanting to hear the answer.

"Almost eight years ago, my family were killed in a great fire. Those that escaped were hunted down. We escaped with barely our lives…" Sam replied quietly, the flames dancing in her eyes. "My father stayed behind to try and help. We feared that he was dead until he returned to America with my Grandpa. He'd been badly burnt, but recovered quickly.

"They found us soon after that… well, they found my parents. They apparently presumed my grandfather was already dead, so we managed to hide out and flee from them. We've been running ever since," Sam finished her hot chocolate and released the already cooling mug from her grasp, fearing that soon the story would become to much to bear.

"How were they able to find you?" Don asked, trying to gain as much information about the Hokkaido family as possible.

"New York connections," she replied, not daring to meet any of their eyes. "What you need to understand is, the Hokkaido family are powerful- Extraordinarily powerful. They are trained from the moment they are born in the ways of Ninjitsu, and most Hokkaido children can manifest on the spiritual plain by the age of thirteen. They live and breathe the art. They are the pure essence of assassin. Yet they are small in number."

"Impossible," Leonardo breathed, his eyes widening at this shocking piece of information.

"Not quite," Donatello stated thoughtfully. "It explains the energy that surrounded Sams apartment."

"How my son?" Master splinter asked, raising a bushy eyebrow inquisitively.

"The energy was amazing. It's a controlled residual compound, similar in make-up to the energy used in the nexus, but not quite. This, unlike the nexus energy, is earth bound, and therefore created by humanity," Donatello began, grabbing some sort of electronic device from his bag to read the saved data. "The source of the energy seemed to radiate from the window that you opened Raph, as that's where it hit its peak. The power seemed to be constantly decreasing all the time we were there, so I assume that when you broke through the window, you disrupted a circuit; you took away the source. It also explains why Sam couldn't escape."

"That explains nothing Don," Raph shook his head, only half understanding his brother.

Sighing at the loss of his words on his family, Donnie tried to explain; "It's a spiritual manifestation. Whoever set it up was in laymen's terms an illusionist. They used their ability to create a strong barrier surrounding Sam's apartment, but this barrier had a weak spot; the window. That's where the caster stood when he created this…bubble, as it were, that engulfed the apartment. It allowed him, or her, to control what was going on inside said bubble to a certain extent."

"It's within their abilities to do so," Sam agreed, listening to the turtles finds. If only she'd thought of that earlier. Why didn't she just think rationally for once? She cursed her emotions for getting the better of her as she glared scathingly at the table.

"So, you think it's these guys that took Danny?" Mikey asked softly, lifting his gaze from his also empty mug.

A lump caught in Sam's throat, and unable to voice her answer, she nodded, drawing her knees up to her chest as she perched upon her chair. That man in black, the one with the voice like ice had just taken him from her. It was so easy for him… Why did she just sit there? That's right, the knife. He'd had a knife. He'd held Danny's life at the point of a blade.

"Sam, could you try telling me what went on in your apartment?" Donatello asked softly, his voice willing her to try, but resigned to the fact that she may not be up to it.

The eyes of the female teen looked to the purple clad ninja, empty and full of sorrow, but she nodded, resting her chin on her knees. "We'd gotten home, with the pizza and the movie. I thought something was odd, I'd felt it, but ignored it," She seethed at herself. "I was so stupid…"

Sighing shakily for a moment, she gathered herself and swallowed hard, sorting out her thoughts. "The movie had just started when the apartment completely blacked out. Whole block was out. So I went to get some candles and torches from my bedroom. Just left for a moment when I heard Danny scream…" Pausing, the first body swung through her mind's eye, the fear she'd felt still fresh as it once more shuddered through her body.

"I came to him, and saw the first body…saw the mask, read the message. I knew who it was. Told Danny to pack, and I did so myself. I wasn't risking anything, not this time. This time was supposed to be different, but they still found us. I'd made a promise," she was rambling now, and stopped herself before she went to far, pushing back the threat of tears.

"So, I packed," she said slowly, forming her words on her lips before uttering the sounds. "There was the second body, outside my window. Swaying there in the dark, being beaten by the rain… He was so young. Died for no reason; no reason at all. It made me sick. I tried to leave, but when I went to open the door… there were these… eight legs- Lots of them. They were everywhere. Crawling over everything. I froze! I shouldn't have but I did. But that's when I realised; they were just trying to get to me. I wouldn't let them get to me. So I ran out and slammed the door shut behind me," she let out a small hysterical chuckle before it died into silence.

Raph watched the young woman's body shudder involuntarily as she relived the nightmare. Her eyes were haunted with those images, with that fear she knew she felt throughout her body. Her sentences were broken and layered with a hysterical emotion that showed when she'd let slip that laugh. It angered him to think that these people were so sick minded that they could do this to someone. Especially to one of his friends.

"Then what happened?" Donnie urged, his voice soft and caring. Yet the steely undercurrent told of his fury.

"I went to get Danny," She replied hollowly. "Saw the final body. It had scared him so much. No idea how they got those pictures of us. I dragged him quickly out of there to the door. It wouldn't open. I tried everything, but it wouldn't open. The damn door just wouldn't open!"

Shaking her head, she continued to stare at the table, chin still resting on her knees. "Tried the window too. Tried smashing it with a lamp- never did like that lamp. But it wouldn't open. We were trapped. Nothing worked. Nothing opened. I was so scared…"

Her voice was quiet, and cracked at the edges. It made the five mutant's hearts break to listen to it. Raph shuffled his chair round to Sam, where he took a hesitant arm and wrapped it around her shoulders, hoping the body contact would give her some comfort.

At first she tensed at the touch that was so light and warm, but soon melted into the small embrace, her eyes glancing up at the red clad turtle quickly as she relaxed ever so slightly. The gaze spoke more than a thousand words could ever do, as for that brief moment, Raph glimpsed Sam, small and weak, but he saw her, and she thanked him.

Breathing deeply, the teen turned, and began to once more reiterate her nightmare, "That's when a voice… It came from nowhere. I looked but there was no one there. It tried to break me, told me to just give in and accept that I was eventually going to loose. And that laughter - It was like ice. Then out of the darkness I saw the face; his eyes dead and cold, yet they could look right into you and tear you apart from the inside…

"But he disappeared. Just an illusion designed to frighten. When I opened my eyes, I saw the message written on the wall- Just red paint. It's like we weren't even worth the trouble," she scowled darkly.

"We had to get out of there. I tried to call for help on the phone, but they'd cut the line. I threw it across the room," she chuckled coldly, shaking her head as her stomach twisted uncomfortably. "I remember feeling sick with fear…I was ready to give up. There was nothing I could do. We were trapped with no way out…

"But then I found the shell cell. You guys were my only hope," She said quietly, receiving a small reassuring squeeze from the emerald green turtle whose arm currently hung around her shoulder.

She shuffled for a moment in her seat, her hand fishing around in her pocket until she brought out a broken shell cell, placing it softly on the table before she nudged it towards Donnie. "I kind of broke it. I'm sorry Don," she said quietly, her dark chocolate eyes lifting to meet the purple clad turtle's.

"Hey, nothing that can't be fixed," he replied, taking the shell cell in his hands and giving it a small once over with his eyes before flashing the teen girl a small smile.

She returned the small smile before averting her eyes once more. "I broke it when I saw what was in our bath. I immediately regretted calling you lot. I just put you in more danger. I didn't want you getting hurt too… I couldn't bear loosing you five…"

A small sniffle, and a wipe of her sleeve to remove the single tear that rolled down her cheek later, Sam continued her story, "That's when I went to find Danny. But I couldn't. I looked everywhere, but he was nowhere. I was getting scared before I heard him call out to me from the living room. I found him there, being held by his jacket by a figure dressed head to toe in black.

"He was so scared. I could see it in his eyes. I tried to get him back, but the man knocked him out and held a knife to his throat. He said he'd kill Danny if I did anything. I just stood there… There must have been something I could've done!" She growled in frustration, tears beginning to glisten in her eyes. "Then he just left, through the glass of the window I couldn't open, with my brother over his shoulder. You guys turned up a while later."

"He went through the glass?" Leo exclaimed incredulously.

"This is highly disturbing indeed," Master Splinter muttered, his eyes distant and lost in thought as he poured himself another cup of tea, taking a long draught of the steaming liquid. "I will meditate on this. Please excuse me Miss Jones. I think it's best now for you all to get some rest, we'll deal with this more tomorrow."

"Yes sensei," the small group of teens answered as their Master left them to their own devices, the shoji doors shutting behind the wizened rat as he retreated to his room.

"Hey, you did all you could," Raph told the woman now with tears streaming down her face, trying to use words of comfort to help her calm down.

"We would've done the same in your situation," Donnie added, standing from his seat and picking up his duffel bag, flashing Sam a small smile as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Just, try to get some sleep tonight. It might help," Leo stated, rubbing his own eyes tiredly as he stood along with his purple clad brother.

Mikey said nothing, and cleared the mugs and teapot away in silence, his gaze occasionally flicking towards the teen girl. He in no way blamed her, and in fact knew that feeling of disappointing failure; of knowing you could've done more. He empathised greatly, and wished he could in some way give comfort. Yet he knew not what he could say, so settled with a passing smile as he walked by her from the kitchen to the stairs.

"Come on," Raph nudged the teen gently, getting up himself after sending her a warm smile. He watched Sam slowly unfold herself and stand from her seat, testing her muscles as she did so. It had been a long night, and Raph feared that if Sam didn't get some well needed rest, she would make herself ill.

"I'm sorry guys," Sam stated clearly, an underlying sorrow to her voice as she stopped to look at each brother in turn.

The mutants returned her gaze quizzically.

"For what?" Leo asked.

"For making you players in this game," she told them sadly.

* * *

A/n: Don't expect a chapter this long again for a while. Lol. Well, I just hope it gave you some answers. Sorry for the delay in getting it up too. Now please, feed the hungry author!

'Never underestimate the power of chocolate' is CrystalWolf10's. She's brilliant. If she doesn't want me using it, just let me know!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/n**: This being chapter ten (yay!) for every review I receive, I will be replying. So, if you don't have an account, and wish for me to reply, leave your email.

Sorry for the delay. I wanted to get 'Evergreen' up- twas an unrelenting plot bunny.

I do not own the TMNT. But if I did… hehehe.

_- Turn around there's those eyes again.  
Turn around fake indifference and I -  
Watch their cold, dark silhouettes disappear. – _:- Roses, by Meg and Dia

Sam was walking through the dark- A giant void of nothingness. There was no air, no space, no floor; just nothing. She didn't know where she was walking; where she'd been or where she was going. She just went where her feet decided to travel; through the persistent gloom.

Yet, as she walked to nowhere, a strong feeling of dread seemed to engulf her senses, like the white noise you got on the radio. Try as she might, she couldn't shake it. It just got worse every time she tried to tune it out. However, soon, the buzzing started to become distinguishable… like laughter; cruel high pitched laughter. The nothing was laughing at her.

It chilled her to the bone; sending shudders through her spine. She tried to find the source of the voice, but it was nowhere and everywhere at the same time. The sound seeped through her ears and repeatedly pounded at her mind; insulting her, taunting her, whispering sweet nothings in her ear…

"Go away! Get away from me!" She screamed, shaking her head and clamping her hands over her ears.

She felt the hot breath on the back of her neck; the tickle of a man's lips as they pressed against her skin. Stumbling away, Sam's eyes darted wildly around the space, looking for the owner of that teasing kiss. It made her sick with fear…

"Sammy…" A voice whispered in the dark.

"Sammy… Help me," it sounded worryingly familiar.

"You let him take me Sammy… Why?"

"Danny!" She cried out desperately, wheeling around and around, looking for her lost little brother in the void.

"Danny, I'm coming! I'm…I'm going to help you. I promise!" She pleaded into the darkness, her voice seeming so small and pathetic.

"Don't you care anymore Sammy?" the voice now had a huddled form, suddenly alight in the dark. "Why did you let them take me?"

Sam ran cautiously to the small huddled form that had shimmered into existence, her eyes filling with tears, "I'm sorry, Danny. I'm so sorry. I… I didn't mean to!"

Her hands slowly descended upon the shoulders of the figure, her knees meeting with what she presumed was the floor in the never ending darkness as she knelt before him. She shook the boy gently, letting him know she was there; that he was safe now.

His head shot up, making Sam fall backwards in surprise.

Blank, ghostly eyes stared at her, unblinking and cold. It was her Danny, but he also wasn't. There was no soul to this boy; merely an empty shell; a ghost of what was once her little brother. And sat upon his face were streaks of red; sliding down his cheeks, trailing from his eyes to his chin… he was crying blood.

"You let them do this to me!" the boy cried out in anguish. "Why'd you let them take me Sammy?"

Sam stood, her eyes catching sight of her hands. They were slathered in blood; the red liquid slick in-between her fingers as it dripped off her appendages.

The teen girl shook her head in denial, tears flying from her cheeks and disappearing into the meaninglessness black. "I didn't… I tried my best! I couldn't… I didn't mean to! Danny, I'm sorry," She implored.

"_You should've given up when the offer was given,_" a raspy voice told her from the gloom. "_Then you would've both been together meeting your end. Now, you will watch your brother suffer_!"

The vindictive laughter echoed through the dark, bouncing off the nothingness and returning to her ears to strike her down internally. It hurt her; it cut into her like a knife. "NO! I did my best! You won't touch him! I will never let you hurt him!" She shrieked defiantly to the nameless voice.

Her bloodied hand reached out to her brother, fingers snatching in the gloom for something that wasn't there… Danny had gone. They'd taken him! Again she'd failed to protect her little brother from the dangers that threatened them.

"Not again! I won't loose him," Sam choked, "Not again!" She lunged into the darkness, only to feel herself falling…

Down, down, down she fell; falling into the gloom, arms grabbing wildly for something that would stop her. But there was nothing; there was never anything to help her- only to stare at her from the shadows- those red eyes, burning into her, gazing hungrily at her. Always the red eyes; always the faceless pits of iniquity. They were relentless; they were power mad; and they were determined to have Sam's life…

…

Her eyes snapped open, seeing only the worn brick ceiling of the turtle's spare room. It was dark, yet from the single flicker of light that crept in under the door she could make out the familiar silhouettes of the furniture. The knowledge she was once more in a safe haven slowed her hurried breathing, allowing her to detangle herself from the crisp white linen sheets.

Sam noticed that her body was covered in a thin sheet of sweat that had accumulated from the nightmare as she perched upon the edge of her bed; it sent shivers down her spine as her skin was exposed to the cool atmosphere of the lair, the light clothes she wore doing nothing to help prevent heat loss.

The first thing she did was to rub her eyes, ridding herself of the sleep and images of red eyes that had imprinted themselves onto her eyelids during her fitful nightmare. Shuddering at the mere memory, she banished those thoughts to the darker depths of her mind as she stood and walked to her bedroom door. Flexing her shaking fingers, she stared at her hands; the blood that had covered them in her nightmare had vanished, unfortunately leaving behind the worry it had brought with it.

Curling her hand around the worn brass door knob, she opened it gingerly, stepping out and closing the wooden door silently behind her in fear of waking the turtle's from what she was sure was some well needed sleep. A luxury Sam was positive she wouldn't experience for the rest of the night.

Rubbing her temples in an, albeit, pathetic attempt at subduing an encroaching headache, the young woman headed to the dojo. If she wasn't going to be able to get some rest, she may as well do something productive with her time. It also allowed her to concentrate on something other than her nightmare and her current situation; freeing her mind from her inner demons that would've been sure to engulf her in fear.

One other thing that disturbed her was the silence. There was one time when she would've basked in the peace, but now it just deafened her. Reaching the dojo, she propped the door closed, immediately making a bee line for the small stereo that sat on the side. If it wasn't for Raphs midnight workouts, it wouldn't even be there.

Thanking the red clad turtle mentally, she grabbed a spare CD, barely even glancing at the cover before shoving it into the disc holder, closing it with a resounding click before prodding the play button with more force than necessary. Almost immediately, the soft strumming of a guitar began to fill the room with a gentle rhythm, accompanied by a gruff, gravelled vocalist, singing of summers disappeared and lovers gone.

Sam wasted no time in beginning a set of katas she'd learnt from Master Splinter the previous week. They were more complex, and she was having difficulty moving through the stages, unlike the four brothers whom she trained with; they all seemed to take to it like a fish to water. It didn't surprise her though; their skills far surpassed her own. As far as they were concerned, she was barely starting the harder basics.

However, she relished in the concentration the katas' provided her with. It stopped her thoughts from straying onto more worrying matters.

Soon though, Sam regretted not taking the extra bit of time to stretch and limber up her stiff muscles. Each time she pushed them now, they cried out in protest, forcing her to slow down, something she didn't want to do. Sleep deprivation due to the weight of her loss suffocating her beneath nightmares added to the painful onslaught.

Nevertheless, the end result was always going to be the same; it was her fault, she thought darkly, her chest heaving as her lungs drew in deep, shaky breaths. She deserved to feel the aching pain that racked her muscles. It was her fault her little brother was taken; her stupidity that caused his capture. She should've trusted her instincts. Maybe then she wouldn't be in this mess; maybe then, her brother would still be by her side.

She turned her sob into a growl of rage as she front flipped to the weapons stand, grabbed a shruiken, and launched it at the wall. It hit its target with deadly precision, the dull thud reverberating off the wall as the trickle of brick dust emphasised its force. She glared at the blade with a dark satisfaction, inhaling deeply as she clenched her fists by her sides.

That's when her eyes fell upon the emerald green ninja leaning on the door frame to the dojo. She hadn't even heard him come in… then again, she was lost in her own musings that fell in time with the rhythm of the music, and was oblivious to any other goings on. Sam had no idea how long he'd been watching; heck, she didn't even know how long she'd been in there.

The turtle's eyes watched her curiously from his post, the green arms folded across his plastron as he used the door frame to prop him up. Tentatively, he entered the dojo, his strides soft but purposeful as he wandered to the wounded wall, plucking the shruiken from the brick work before twirling it expertly in his hands. Slowly, he removed his eyes from the damage done to the dojo wall back to the hushed Samantha.

Silence reigned between the two friends, the only noise being that of the stereo as each companion sized the other up, questions dancing on their tongues only to be left unspoken. Neither made a move to speak, so Sam returned to her katas.

Her mind was distracted now, the presence of the turtle sending her concentration spiralling off into the unknown. More often than necessary her eyes flickered towards the still reptile, mentally checking if he was still in the dojo with her. Some part of her wanted him to leave, to just walk out without uttering a word. Yet, a different part of her wanted a friendly ear and a gentle touch; someone to confide in and open up to.

Truthfully, she didn't know what she wanted anymore. Her morals, her feelings, her logic- all had been sent spiralling out of control when that usurper took her brother. Her whole life had been sliding steadily down hill since she took her first breath eighteen years ago. Sometimes, she wondered if she would ever see the silver lining.

It was at that moment she inhaled sharply, a grimace contorting her face as her foot landed awkwardly on the dojo floor, her knee jutting out so that her ankle twisted painfully beneath her. She should've paid better attention to the kata; she had landed weirdly after the flying snap kick because she wasn't concentrating. Cursing herself mentally, she hobbled hurriedly to regain her balance, shifting her weight onto her good foot. _Typical_, Sam thought venomously.

A pair of strong green arms wrapped themselves around her, letting her relieve some of the pressure being put onto both her good and bad ankle. Silently, their eyes sought each others out, arguing with but a simple proud glare, and a soft reprimanding gaze that eventually over ruled. With help from the older turtle, Sam hobbled to the bench, where she sat upon the wood with a grateful groan.

Sam lifted her foot so it rested upon her other leg before she gently began to kneed at her ankle, trying to remove some of the aching that throbbed through her foot. Once again, she'd been stupid enough to loose her concentration. After all, every action has a reaction.

"Here," A brusque voice broke the unspoken silence, kneeling on the dojo floor in front of Sam and taking her foot.

For a moment, the young woman resisted, shooting the green male a small glare before she caught sight of his eyes; they were so intense, but so gentle, letting her know that he was just trying to help. At this, her own gaze softened, and averted sheepishly as she let the ninja take her foot and place it in his lap. Slowly, she began to feel his three fingers work their magic as they massaged her ankle, pushing soft circles onto the skin as he attempted to work out the pain.

"You should be gettin' some rest," he chided tenderly, his hazel eyes flicking up to the teen girl.

Sam tensed up, her hands clenching the edge of the bench. _How does he know what I should or should not be doing_? "I _should_ be out looking for Danny," she retorted tersely.

"And where're ya going to start looking? Hm?" The turtle asked exasperatedly, his irritation directed more towards the lack of concern for her own well being than anything else.

"It's better than lounging around here feeling absolutely useless," Sam growled, rubbing the crook of her nose in frustration.

"Be reasonable," he was such a hypocrite. "What are you gonna do out there but put yourself in more danger?"

"Pfft," Sam snorted, her eyes flashing at Raphael as she began to wring her hands absently in her lap. "They're not going to kill me yet. I'll probably worry myself to death way before then…Mmm, you're good at that," she complimented.

Raph shook his head at the change of subject, eyes glancing quickly up to the girl before moving back down to her ankle. He could still feel the contorted muscle underneath the tips of his fingers; years of practise told him that the joint would probably be very stiff tomorrow.

"I heard you scream earlier…" he said in passing, concern lining his voice.

"Bad dream," Sam replied swiftly, too swiftly in fact for her liking. She felt the hands still on her ankle, and turned her gaze to the turtle as he stared up at her with a raised eye ridge.

"Must've been one bad dream," he grunted, attempting to get the young woman to open up to him. If anyone knew it wasn't good to bottle your emotions, it was him.

"Yeah, I guess it was," Sam replied quietly, her eyes looking away from Raph uncomfortably and down to her hands, where she flexed her fingers delicately.

Raphael just stared at his friend closely for a long moment, trying to figure out what she meant by that. Obviously the nightmare had done a number on her, but he couldn't figure out exactly how.

"It's my fault, isn't it," She said, more of a statement than anything else, voicing her inner demon to the older turtle. "I should've been more careful! I… I should've known something was wrong."

He blinked for a moment, a frown slowly forming on his face before he moved onto the bench next to her, "Hey, if anyone's to blame, it's that Hokkaido lot. Not you. You did everything you could…"

"But that's it! I just stood there and let him take Danny," Sam cried out. "I could've done something! But there was a knife… and I froze."

"You were protecting him. We would've all done the same," Raph told her sharply, placing a hand upon her shoulder, trying to catch her wandering gaze.

"It was my fault…his blood is on my hands…" She murmured, continuing to wring her hands absently in her lap. Suddenly, she felt a tentative green hand being placed upon her fidgeting appendages.

"Is that what you saw in your nightmare?" He asked softly, hoping the small amount of body contact would calm her.

Sam nodded as the tears streamed down her face, "He was so scared. It was my fault; I couldn't help him." She shuddered at the memory, the cold feeling running through her spine and drowning her in guilt.

"You gotta stop thinking like this! None of it was your fault, and you've got to remember that," Raph told her harshly, his hazel eyes brimming with warmth. "You're going to be no use to Danny if you're consumed by guilt. Take it from someone who knows."

Sam swallowed, releasing one of her hands from the turtles clasp to wipe away her tears, letting Raphs words sink in. As much as it pained her to agree with him, she did. She was being stupid, as usual. Blaming herself was going to get her nowhere; it certainly wasn't going to help her brother. She needed to pull herself together- fear was merely the anticipation of pain after all.

"I just want him back Raph," she whispered as he wrapped a timid arm around her shoulders, drawing her into a comforting embrace.

"I know ya do. We all do," the older turtle replied gently, slowly falling into a warm silence with the teen girl.

After a while, her breathing became regular and melodic as she drifted off into a light slumber upon his shoulder. His eyes watched Sam as she slept; even whilst she dreamt her face looked stretched and old. It worried him to see her so worked up. Raph just wished that he could do more to help her.

* * *

"Anything Donnie?" Leo asked for what seemed like the hundredth time to the purple clad turtle.

It had been a whole day since the apartment incident where Danny had been taken, and they were still no closer to finding the nine year old. The samples that had been taken had been already been analysed by Donatello, and nothing had been gained from the information found. There were no finger prints, no hair samples, nothing to lead them to the culprits. All they had was what Sam had told them, and what Donnie had already gained from the mysterious energy signatures that had surrounded her apartment on that fateful night.

"Nothing's changed in the last five seconds, Leo," the sea green turtle sighed exasperatedly, rubbing his tired eyes before returning to tapping the keys on his computer. "Unless, of course, you count my patience, which has gotten to a critically low point where I may explode if you ask me that question again in the next two hours."

The whole day had been awkward. The small group milled about each other mostly in silence, training being completed as usual, and meals being eaten together. Yet each task was taken with minimal talking. A dark cloud had descended upon the group, its gloom casting an ominous shadow upon the odd family, making everything seem a lot harder than it actually was.

They'd told April and Casey during the later hours of the morning. The look that dawned on Casey's face was one that even had Leonardo worried. It was the look that Raph had on his face when he'd almost hit Mikey with that lead pipe all those years ago- that testosterone filled animalistic instinct that could let a male kill.

April had taken it upon herself to look after Casey after that, making sure he did nothing incredibly stupid, but still letting him help. She'd taken him to the surface, and they were doing their own research into Danny's disappearance; trying to find out whether anyone in the city had information on a missing boy, or whether there were any new people in town that fitted the description of the Hokkaido clan. It was a difficult task, but any help was better than no help at all.

Plus, it kept Casey busy.

Sam had been floating around the lair for the better part of the day, undecided on what to do or where to make herself useful. All in all, it made her the most annoying person on the planet aside from Michelangelo, who had decided he needed to help with every tiny little thing that Donatello did.

Donnie let his head fall against his desk repeatedly for a moment, before a loud groan escaped his lips and he decided to go and retrieve a cup of coffee from the kitchen. Coffee was his saviour; his one true love. Coffee would never desert you in your time of need, or talk back to you, or ask you for favours at the most inopportune moments.

Then again, coffee couldn't give you guidance or a friendly shoulder in your time of need either. That was what Donnie really wanted at that moment; for someone else to do the work while he accepted a comforting shoulder to lean on, and perhaps a nice hot cookie.

But, alas, the world did not give you a cookie when you asked for it. The world was just one giant bully who held that cookie teasingly above your head, ready to snatch it away whenever you went to take it.

"Damn cookies," Don grumbled as he fumbled around with the coffee maker, which April had so kindly brought him two Christmas's ago.

"You have been at that computer way too long if you're cursing cookies, dude," Mikey admonished with an amused smirk.

_Joy of all joys, Michelangelo_- "Cookies are the least of my problems at the moment, Mikey." Donnie knew that his youngest brother was just trying to cheer everyone up, but it just seemed to grate on his nerves; and he was the patient one. It could be, perhaps, that swelling pit of worry that sucked him into its swirling gloom that made him so easily irritated. That, or the constant questioning from his brothers.

Turning as the coffee machine ceased in its slightly comforting buzz, Donnie poured out the rich, steaming brown liquid into his age old star trek mug and took a long satisfying smell before sipping at the hot beverage. It calmed him and warmed his bones as the heat seeped through his taught green skin. He let out an appreciative '_mmmm_' before deciding it was best to return to his work station.

Wandering out of the kitchen with Mikey in tow, Donnie cradled his mug protectively, jumping into his swivel chair at first chance and cracking his joints; much to the disapproval of his eldest brother whom tutted loudly to demonstrate his displeasure. It made Donnie smirk that he could still irritate Leo with his aged habit.

"What are you actually doing Don?" Mikey asked with a vague interest, leaning over his brother's shoulder to stare at the confusing symbols on the computer screen.

Rolling his eyes, the purple clad turtle attempted to explain what he was trying to do should he get a moment's peace to do it in, "I'm trying to triangulate Sam's apartment in recognition to several other similar energy spikes around New York. That combined with what April and Casey have found out for us so far should give us a rough area to start searching for Danny in."

"Okay," Mikey said with a small nod of the head, not really understanding what his brother just told him but trying to look intelligent all the same.

Sighing querulously, Donnie wondered why he bothered even trying in the first place. He didn't bother to explain it again, so returned to his work instead, hoping that the silence that had suddenly descended on the two siblings would be taken by his youngest brother as a sign to leave him alone.

"Come on Donnie," Raph heaved a heavy sigh, the twirling of his Sai showing his impatience as he sat upon the arm of the couch. "Every minute we're still here is a minute wasted."

Donatello huffed irately, twirling round on his chair to face his red clad brother with a clenched jaw and folded arms. "Please, if you think you can do it any quicker, be my guest," he snapped, spinning back round to grumble inaudibly at his computer screen about impatient siblings.

Raph merely gawked at his usually calm brother in shock, Leo and Mikey joining him in his wide eyed staring. It was quite obvious that Donnie had been at that computer for far too long; and the caffeine was definitely having some side effects on the poor turtle.

After a few more moments, and several hundred clicks later, the printer began to buzz into life, a detailed layout of the estimated search area being the product of the machines labours. Donnie snatched it from his machine before flicking a few of the switches on his computer, turning the screen blank. An uncomfortable silence reigned upon the room as each participant watched the purple clad turtle hesitantly.

"We ready to go…?" Sam said tentatively, entering the room and standing beside Leonardo, watching the genius turtle carefully; ready to back away suddenly in case he really did explode.

"_Now_ we are," Donnie replied, a sheepish smile crossing his beak as he slid his bo staff into his belt before swinging his duffel bag over his shoulder, clutching the city map protectively in his left hand.

"Finally," Raph exhaled exasperatedly, standing with the rest of his brothers, each with a look of relief on their faces. "Maybe you should cut down on the caffeine."

Donnie snorted with wry amusement as they left the lair, "Coffee is the only thing that keeps me sane, especially living with you guys." He shut the large brick doors with a loud crunch, emphasising his point.

* * *

It was beginning to get cold outside; the air was growing thin and was lined with the ever ominous threat of frost. The harsh months of winter were looming dangerously on the horizon, but autumn was still determined to cling onto its last wavering leaves as they fell from the trees to the sodden concrete ground. Yet, it was a clear night, and the stars hung beautifully in the dark navy sky, their white glow complimenting the waxing moon.

It was a shame the light-pollution that was emitted from the busy city streets prevented anyone down below from appreciating the night skies true magnificence. But from the rooftops, it was a different story. The rooftops opened up an entirely new world, unlike any one of the street dwellers could imagine. Up in the shadows were people who enjoyed the silence darkness brought; who spoke in hushed tones and tore through the city unnoticed, protecting those below with no need of a thank you. But in any world, there was always the good and the bad- always those who would hurt; who would steal and lie and cheat.

And the good would find them, even if it took them all night.

How could they continue to fight the fight, even though they all knew there would always be those who would keep causing trouble? It would, after all, be much easier just to leave the world to its own devices.

They all knew the answer, even if sometimes it wasn't what they wanted to hear. It was just what they did. They were the protectors of New York City. They had friends, and family who needed their help, their strength, their intelligence, and their optimism. That's why they did their jobs night, after night, after night- to protect those that they cared for; that they loved.

Leo felt the rush of air as it swept over his body, taking solace in the wide open space and the freedom he felt as they leapt over each rooftop. The sounds of New York greeted his ears with regularity; the harsh beeping of car horns, the yelling of loud drunks, the occasional scream, and the deep thump-thump-thump of music that streamed out of the many clubs and bars that lined the streets. All of it washed over him like a comforting wave. It wouldn't be New York without those noises, and it would definitely scare him witless if they suddenly disappeared.

He liked the comfort that those particular sounds gave him, especially now. Their task was a grim one, and anything that could calm down the bubbling well of worry was received gratefully.

Everything managed to make him on edge; every sound that was out of place, or was irregular; every flicker of the shadows; every little movement he caught through his peripheral vision. He had to remain vigilant; any single slip up could cause him dearly. They weren't dealing with some common criminals this time.

Soon though, they arrived safely atop the aged apartment building that had housed Sam and her younger brother- the start to their search for the nine year old boy who had been snatched only the previous day. Leo knew it would take them all night to do their sweep, but he didn't care. They were going to find Danny.

"Donnie, what's our target area?" Leo asked, eyes flickering around his immediate surroundings.

"We want to do a general sweep of five hundred metre squared range in all directions," Donatello replied, looking at the printout in his hand. "I suggest splitting up into two groups. We'd cover more ground that way. We can keep in touch via the headsets."

Leo caught the headset thrown at him and tucked it over his bold green head, switching it on and tuning it onto the right frequency. He watched the rest of their little scouting group do the same. He felt quite like a secret agent.

"Oh, and take these," Donnie added, chucking what looked like a pair of oddly shaped binoculars at his brother. "Binoculars with heat, and night vision. In case you find anything interesting."

Examining the device carefully, he smirked at his brother's genius, hooking the gadget securely into his belt- it would definitely come in handy. He then caught the worried gaze his brother sent him and rolled his eyes, "I'll be careful with them. Promise."

Now all he had to do was divide them into groups. It was difficult, as each member had their own pros and cons. He needed to find a suitable median in which to split them up. Weighing up his options, Leo finally decided, "Raph will come with me, and we'll scout the west and southern areas. Mikey, Don, Sam, you'll scout the northern and eastern areas. Keep in constant contact with each other; I don't want anyone else going missing."

Everyone seemed happy with these arrangements; even if they didn't, they certainly kept quiet about it. Usually, Leo would've expected Raph to put up a fight, but he just seemed oddly silent about the whole situation. It was as if his brother actually agreed with him on something.

As soon as he had finished speaking, their larger group diminished into two smaller ones, each bounding off in opposite directions across the rooftops of the big apple.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

Raph didn't particularly like the arrangements his brother had made with the groups, but understood the decision all the same. Mikey, Donnie, and Sam, whilst by themselves would not seem very threatening, they meshed well as one formidable faction. Each one of their weaknesses was made up by another person, and combined, their intelligence (or lack there of in Mikey's case) could get them out of most sticky situations.

He knew none of them wanted to leave Sam alone, especially now with this threat on their doorstep. In either one of the grouping circumstances, she was going to be with at least two of them. They just couldn't risk any less.

Exhaling deeply, he caught up with his stationary brother, who was now kneeling on a rooftop ledge peering through the oddly shaped device Donatello had handed them. Raph was thankful for the breather; they had been running constantly for the past half-hour at top turtle speed.

"What'cha looking at?" Raph whispered gruffly, kneeling down beside his eldest brother and squinting into the gloom.

It was a pretty ordinary street, lined with a few crumbling warehouses and a couple of small off licences. Wasn't much to look at, and to Raphael, nothing seemed to be going on at all.

"Unfortunately, nothing helpful," Leo sighed, handing the binoculars over to his brother.

Taking them gingerly in his three fingered clasp, Raphael placed them to his eyes, staring through the lenses at the warehouse motioned to him by his blue clad brother. Heat vision; that's why he couldn't see anything before, because Leo was looking _into_ the building. And his older brother was right. It was just a load of bulky looking people mingling round each other aimlessly waiting for something to do. Raph suspected they were purple dragon scum, but knew that he'd have no chance of swinging his brother round to the idea of jumping down there and having a bit of fun- 'Bash some skulls', as Casey would say.

"Leo, this is crazy," Raph growled, handing the gadget back to his brother. "We're not going to find anything. These Hokkaido people, they're too damn smart."

"We've got to try something," Leo snapped back, regretting the tone of his voice immediately as he sunk into a sitting position on the ledge. "If we don't…" He trailed off, leaving his sentence hanging ominously in the night air. "Let's just hope we get lucky."

Raph grunted, eyes swinging from his brother back to the warehouse. "If we don't find them, they're gonna find us," He told his brother solemnly, the metallic edge in his voice showing the hatred he felt in uttering those words.

The green ninja rubbed his temples, eyes closing for a brief moment as if hoping a brilliant epiphany will suddenly strike him down and solve all his problems. "When did you become the voice of reason," Leo sighed, pushing himself up from the concrete.

"I didn't, that's your job," Raph snorted in amusement, standing beside his brother. "I'm just being my normal pessimistic self."

"Don't we know it," Leo jived, a small smirk playing on his beak as he began to move across the rooftop, ready to once more continue on their search.

"Ain't you the funny turtle," Raph sneered light heartedly, catching up to his brother in a few quick steps and nudging Leo playfully with his elbow. "Not gonna help you while you eat my dust!" Well, they were going that way, might as well turn this scouting missing into something a bit more bearable, the turtle thought as he ran past his elder brother.

Leo smirked; glad his brother had suggested something to make the run a little more sufferable. "I think it's going to be the other way round Raphie-boy," he called after his brother, soon catching up to the running turtle and overtaking him with a quick salute. "I'll make sure to keep a look out, cause all you're going to be seeing is the back of my shell!"

"Rather like your fat head!" Raph growled loudly in retort, legs pumping madly to keep up with his blue clad brother as his eyes kept sweeping his surrounding area, the rooftops crunching underneath his feet.

"Aw, you a bit sour because I'm kicking your arse?" Leo laughed patronisingly, trying to use Michelangelo's tactics and riling his brother up.

The emerald green turtle didn't reply to his brothers condescending comment, but just growled several curses under his breath, loud enough for Leo to hear his annoyance, but quiet enough so he couldn't chastise him for his choice phrases. He really didn't want a lecture about the colourful use of his language.

The race between the two brothers persisted for some time before both realised they weren't getting a good enough look at their surroundings to pass as 'scouting' the area for anything unusual. So, with a heavy heart, they returned to a slower pace, eyes trained on any sort of suspected area that may hold some answers. Occasionally, they would stop short of an interesting area and take a detailed sweep using the high-tech vision goggles Donnie had acquired them with before moving on when nothing was found.

It was at one of these spots though, that something interesting did in fact present itself.

"Psst, fearless, get that big head'a yours over here," Raph hissed, glaring through the darkness at a high-rise office building, not daring to blink in case what he was seeing suddenly decided to disappear. "I think you might wanna take a look at this."

Leo narrowed his eyes dangerously at his younger brother for a moment before kneeling beside him, taking the high-tech binoculars to his eyes so he could get a clearer look at whatever had caught Raphael's eye. True to his brothers' words, it was definitely something he wanted to look at.

Down at the base of the high-rise building were a small group of black clad people, dressed typically as people who didn't want to be noticed. Leo admired their skill, as they obviously knew what they were doing, and were good at it too. If it wasn't for Donnie's marvellous gadget, the blue clad turtle would've lost sight of them a while ago. Narrowing his eyes, he looked for the Foot insignia on their outfit, but saw none, taking this as more of a bad sign. This definitely harrowed an interesting prospect.

His mouth thinned to a disturbed frown as he twiddled a few knobs on the goggles to gain a closer look at the ninja. They were pressed hard up against the walls of the office block; it gave Leo the chance to take a quick head count. There were only four of them, easy pickings for Raph and himself. The thought was definitely a tempting one, but he refrained from even suggesting the idea. Don't judge a book by it's cover and all that jazz was something Leo had learnt the hard way, and so had many of his fallen foe.

"You think these are the punks we're looking for?" Raph asked in hushed tones, his eyes still focused on the spot he'd caught the glimmer of suspicious movement from. He couldn't have been sure before if it was anything to be worried about, but the way his brother stared intently at that same spot as he did filled him with icy dread.

Leo was about to answer his brother when the small group faded from the buildings outer wall, as if they were mist being blown away by the wind. They just fazed out; disappearing in front of his very eyes. Switching quickly to heat vision, he scanned the building, but there were too many human bodies radiating the same glow to be sure that any one of them could be their suspects.

A grim foreboding crinkle lined his forehead as he slowly lowered the binoculars from his narrowed eyes so he could answer his younger brother. "I think they just might be," Leo answered bitterly.

"Finally, some luck," Raph glared at the building angrily, his fingers toying with the hilt of his sai.

That's exactly what Leo thought, and it gave him no comfort. From what Sam had told them, the Hokkaido clan were good; very good. They weren't about to just let four of their trained warriors show there skills off like that as if it were a circus trick. It sent a worried shiver through his spine as he noted the location of the building for further surveillance purposes; perhaps even a reconnaissance mission. Something about this whole scenario felt wrong. They were baiting them; trying to hook them into finding them. The Hokkaido clan, after all, didn't strike Leo as the type of people who could be found unless they wanted to be.

"Let's call up Donnie and the others, we'll meet up with them somewhere," Leo told his brother bleakly, moving back into the confining shadows of the rooftop in case a passer-by should look up to the ledge they currently sat on and got the surprise of their life.

Raph didn't like the way his brother held himself; it was closed and tense, like he knew something that he wasn't prepared to omit at that moment. It was a bad omen to say the least, and it sent waves of concern crashing through Raphael. They weren't dealing with some common street punk this time.

As Leo went to tap into the frequency, a loud shrill wave of static shook through the headset, and also that of his brothers from the way Raph grimaced. Looking to his red clad brother with a look of befuddlement, he listened to the buzzing, and could make out odd words now again coming from the other end of the line, but none of it made any sense what-so-ever.

"What the shell…" Raph began, before the signal suddenly became clear, and Donnie's voice streamed through from the earphones.

"Leo! Raph! We could really do with your help right about now!" Donnie yelped down the headset, and Leo could barely make out the sound of a scuffle going on around his purple clad brother in the background.

"Donnie, what the shell is going on?" Raph growled down the microphone, worried lines creasing his forehead.

"Foot ninja… attack… surrounded… too many…" Donnie's voice was beginning to get cut up once more by static interference.

"Where are you Donnie?" Leo asked, a wave of panic flushing through his system.

"Chamber Street…" Donatello's voice crackled, before fizzing to a complete stop. There wasn't even static to fill the silence that descended between the two eldest as they stood quite still on the rooftop, straining to hear the sound of their brother over the communications device.

"Chamber Street is huge; we ain't got time to be standing around. It's gonna take us long enough to get there," Raph broke the silence, looking to his brother for a moment to double check whether he was going to follow.

Leo stood on the rooftop for a moment longer, the wind toying with the tails of his cobalt mask as he looked across the city that shone with a neon glow. There was no way he was losing any one else; especially not one of his brothers; especially not to the foot. "We'll take Duane Street and main, it'll cut five minutes off our time," Leo stated, already bounding over the rooftops alongside his brother.

He just hoped they weren't going to be too late.

* * *

A/n: Don't kill me. Now please, feed the hungry authoress! She'll even reply this time, yayness! Sorry if there are any amazing typo's, I didn't have time to proof read again.

Oh, and we got the first sign of Snow yesterday! Yay for the fabulous shnow!


	11. Chapter 11

A/n: Delays in updates are due to it becoming increasingly difficult to find time to write. And my college thinks its fun to put a load more work into my lap…

**Warning**: Chapter contains fight scenes, blood, and minor swearing.

For some unknown reason, I do not own the TMNT, and god damn it, never will.

_- How do you go on, when in your heart, you begin to understand, there is no going back? -_ -Frodo, LOTR

"Are we there yet?" Mikey whined, dragging his feet across the tarred rooftop as he bobbed behind his older brother, a simple twitch of his mouth telling Donatello that his youngest sibling was trying his best to force a grin off his face.

"We're not targeting any specific place, goofball," Donnie rolled his eyes, scanning his surrounding area with one of his many gadgets.

"See anything?" Sam asked from beneath her balaclava for the umpteenth time. It had been Master Splinter's idea that Sam go out in disguise, hoping that the simple black clothing would hide her identity from anyone who wished to harm her. The outfit made her feel all in all, a lot more ninja than she liked, but she would not dishonour Sensei's wishes.

"Nothing," Donnie replied with the same answer he always gave, leaving a thick disappointment lingering in the air. Sighing, he tucked the goggles back into his duffel bag before wandering onwards.

"How long have we got until daylight?" Michelangelo asked, staring up at the navy coloured sky dotted with glittering stars in awe. The twinkle of those little diamonds seemed to calm everything down a bit, as if their glow warmed the very earth. It made him kind of happy.

Donatello looked to the waxing moon with a slight squint, calculations running through his mind before he answered, "Another four hours at the least."

Mikey's face dropped at the prospect of spending another four hours filled with disappointment, the sudden fuzzy feeling from the stars disappearing. He couldn't handle not finding Danny, but he was sure that that's what the outcome was going to be. This time, he just couldn't see them winning.

Shaking his head, he threw those pessimistic thoughts from his mind with distaste. It won't do anyone any good if he lost his optimistic, hopeful edge now. Especially not Danny- And they _were_ going to find him. He was resolute in his goal to get the nine year old back; nothing was going to stop them.

"Let's do this thing then," He smirked determinedly, bouncing to the front of the small team, his sharp eyes roaming their environment.

Sam couldn't help but let a hopeful smile dawn on her face as she watched Michelangelo, memories of her own little brother washing through her. They had to find him, they just had to; no ifs, ands, or buts. She'd made a promise to look after him, and she wasn't about to break her vow.

It had been almost an hour since they'd split up from Leo and Raph, and they'd covered a large area in that time. At first, they'd been silently scouting their targeted area, but realised that working together in quiet was not helping their situation. So, Mikey had started a simple conversation that both Donatello and Sam took up. It broke the awkward silence, and let the group continue their mission in a slightly more comfortable manner.

"Hey, Donnie," Sam called to the purple clad turtle from the other side of the roof that they'd stopped at for a brief moment. "Take a look at this."

Donatello wandered over with a raised eye ridge, his binoculars already clasped in his three fingered hand, and Michelangelo following on his heels. "What is it?" He asked curiously, following Sam's pointing finger and lifting the goggles to his eyes, adjusting the focus on the blurred image.

"Definitely ninja," Donnie frowned, zooming in on the small group of black clad figures. "Don't know whether they're the ones we're looking for…"

Sam bit her bottom lip beneath her balaclava, her eyes squinting through the dark to try and gain a better view. Something about the way they moved told Sam that these weren't the ninja they were looking for, but they were definitely not to be messed with. Toying with the hilt of her sword that sat on her back for a moment, she looked to Donatello for advice on what to do, knowing she wasn't in the right frame of mind to make a rational decision.

"It's the foot," Donnie frowned with a worried glare, removing the goggles from his eyes exasperatedly. "Come on, lets get out of here. The foot is the last thing we need."

Sam nodded, feeling the temptation of drawing her blades and releasing her anger upon the Foot overwhelming, but she resisted with difficulty, instead following Donnie and Michelangelo over the rooftops to avoid the ninja. They had more important things to deal with after all; the foot would just slow them down.

The wind rippled past them as they ran across the rooftops, their feet pounding on the rough roofs as they traversed across the New York skyline. But there was something off. Something that just wasn't right. All three of them could feel it, a shudder flowing through their spines as each set of eyes glanced behind them just to find nothing there but the rooftops they had left behind.

They slowed down after a while, settling on a singular high rise block of flats on the northern side of their targeted area. Unfortunately, this part of town wasn't best known for its reception, so they'd have to move on before contacting Leo and Raph. Breathing heavily, each listened to the silence that surrounded them, filled with the usual sounds of New York's night life that they filtered from their ears so that only relevant noises made their mark.

"You think they saw us?" Mikey wondered aloud, eyes skirting around the darkened scenery for any flicker of the shadows that would be the tell-tale signs of any following ninja.

"I can't say. I just hope they didn't, we can't deal with them at the moment," Donnie replied, mimicking Michelangelo in his staring whilst he fished around in his bag for the binoculars. "We won't stay here for too long. Receptions bad," He muttered, mainly to himself but also to either of his two companions if they wished to listen as he lifted the goggles to his eyes.

Mikey and Sam took the other two remaining sides of the rooftop, gazing across the horizon, eyes scanning the buildings for any unusual activity. This seemed to be a very quiet part of the city; the lamp light flickered in neglect as it cast its dappled golden glow onto the crumbling warehouses and half abandoned streets. There would be the occasional shady character that wandered past, cloaked in high collared shirts or miniskirts that barely covered their undergarments, but nothing too out of the ordinary.

Once more the small group was met with large disappointment. Their search had again led them to nothing; no sign of the Hokkaido clan, no sign of Danny, no sign of anything particularly interesting at all. Just the same old gum strewn streets they saw on a daily basis. But that ray of hope still glimmered in the dark, guiding them onwards. It was the only thing they had that kept them still searching the sordid alleys and roads of their beloved city.

"Come on, there's nothing here," Donnie sighed dejectedly, pocketing the vision equipment before turning to his companions, staring slightly at Sam's attire for a moment. It took a bit of getting used to.

"You should be more specific you know," Mikey stated simply, a thoughtful twinkle in his eye. "Cause technically bro, there is _something_ here. If there was _nothing_ here, then we'd be standing on nothing, but in actual fact, we're standing on something. Ergo, there is _something_ here…"

Donatello blinked stupidly at his youngest sibling for a moment, before shaking his head in disbelief. "Unbelievable," he murmured with the hint of a smile, glancing at Sam who shrugged in reply, obviously sporting the same half grin he currently wore. "Come on lamebrain, before your head starts to hurt from over-thinking things," the purple clad turtle teased, jumping across to the adjacent rooftop.

With an insane grin, Michelangelo followed his brother with an optimistic leap, landing with barely a sound on the opposing roof beside the intellectual turtle.

Sam shook her head, taking a running dive across the gap between the rooftops, landing softly next to her companions as they continued their search.

But a sound caught her ears; it wasn't anything special, just a small shuffling noise and the sliding of grit across a concrete edge. It could be anything; a bird, a rat, a loose piece of brickwork.

However, when you've seen a group of Foot ninja merely moments before and are currently on the run from a psychotic Japanese family of warriors that have hunted you since the day you were born, you can't be too careful.

Stopping for a moment, Sam stilled her breathing, straining her ears to pick up any other sounds that could give away the element of surprise that the supposed attackers might have upon them. Her fingers fiddled at the edges of her balaclava irritably, hating the restriction the mask caused her as she stared at her shadowed surroundings. After a few moments of silence, she put it down to paranoia, and cursed herself inwardly for wasting precious seconds for being overly cautious.

"What's with the hold up dude-ette?" Mikey asked with a raised eye ridge as both he and Donatello looked back at her still figure, a film of intrigue covering their faces.

"Thought I heard something," Sam told them quietly, taking the few steps between herself and the two brothers, shrugging her shoulders with a faking nonchalance. "It's nothing…"

She let out a loud squeal of surprise as she was suddenly bowled over by a large orange clad streak, catching a short glimpse of a bladed edged whizzing over their heads.

"It's _never_ nothing, dude-ette," Mikey panted, taking a glance to Sam with a small knowing grin before he leapt up, nun-chucks already spinning wildly in the air.

"Looks like we got a Foot problem," Donnie stated with a glare at the sudden appearance of numerous black clad figures, headed by a singular curved female body.

"Hey, wouldn't it be feet? Not foot?" Mikey asked suddenly, backing up to stand beside his brother.

"Something tells me grammar isn't their strong point," Sam snarled, whipping out her blades with a hiss of metal, settling into an immediate defensive stance. This wasn't good; they were outnumbered by about ten to one. The feet…Foot didn't play fair. "This would be a great time to call for Leo and Raph," Sam stated simply, risking a glance towards Donatello.

"We're in a dead zone! The shell cell doesn't work!" He hissed back in reply, bo staff held steady in his three fingered hands.

"Then lets skid-addle before we get turned into sushi," Mikey swallowed hard, turning on his heels to jump to the next roof, a sudden hunger washing through him at the mention of sushi.

"Agreed," Donatello yelped as he barely dodged another shruiken, following his youngest brother over the rooftops with Sam bringing up the rear.

"Oof!" Sam stumbled back as she ran headfirst into the back of Donatellos shell. "What the…? Oh…"

"Why's it always us?" Mikey whimpered as he backed away from another large group of Foot ninja blocking their only retreat. They couldn't even jump into one of the many alleys, as this particularly large roof now played host to dozens of menacing black clad ninja that lined its edges.

"It is a shame your brothers will not be here to witness this," Karai spoke coldly, stepping forward from the protection of her group of loyal ninja. "The demise of you turtles is something I have greatly looked forward too."

"Just try it," Sam snarled, flashing her swords menacingly in the night air. "I'll cut you down before you draw your weapons." The Foot had picked the wrong night to attack her friends.

"I would've spared your life if it weren't for your foul tongue," Karai glared at Sam, her eyes searching the hidden features for something she might recognise. "Now, all three of you will perish together! Foot ninja, _totsugeki shimasu_!"

Sam had never actually been in a battle before; not one where she was fighting those who could equal, if not over power her in skill; especially not one where she was fighting for her life against an unknown nemesis. She found herself having to be on the defensive more than the offensive just to ensure her safety.

Metal clashed with metal as she began the deadly dance, twisting and turning under the weapons, blocking and deflecting attacks as she pranced across her stage, attempting to knock out as many foes as she could whilst keeping an eye on Donnie and Mikey.

Damn the foot! Damn the Hokkaido clan! And damn the fact that she couldn't, for once, have a peaceful evening out! Damn it all!

"Damn," She cursed loudly as she buckled beneath the weight of a particular blow, only just managing to roll away from the finishing sweep of the sword. She hoped that her two companions were having better luck than she was.

"Why are you attacking us? We didn't do anything this time!" Donnie cried out angrily as his Bo swept a number of Foot off their feet; several quick jabs later and the fallen ninja were unconscious to boot.

"The Foot are honour bound to slay those who murdered their Master," Karai growled loudly from her watching post, a hint of bemusement in her voice as she watched the small allied force succumb to her horde of ninja.

They couldn't do this, not alone.

"Now would be a great time to call for Raph and Leo!" Mikey called out desperately to his purple clad brother, his nun chucks flying through the air with a skill one could only relate to years of training.

"We're in a dead zone Mikey! It won't work!" Donnie yelled in reply, leaping to his brothers aid, smacking his Bo staff across the heads of a couple of Foot as he went.

"Can't you just try, Donnie? We're getting our arses kicked!" Sam pleaded, the itch from earlier that told her a fight with some Foot would be fun disappearing in the blink of an eye as she ducked and weaved her way through the crowd to her friends.

Donnie's face twisted into a pained thoughtful expression before he huffed in surrender, managing to somehow fish his shell cell out of his pack and defend himself at the same time. Sam gaped admiringly for a moment before having to divert her attention back to the fight at hand. If she hadn't, then she'd be a head shorter.

A few clicks later and Donnie had sorted out the wireless connection with his headset, and was currently tucking the high-tech phone into one of hidden belt pockets. _Please, oh please start ringing_, the sea green turtle thought franticly, biting his lip as he ducked out of range from the Foot.

Silence reigned, and continued to soak him for several agonising seconds before a single tone started to jingle through the head set. He could've leapt for joy if he wasn't otherwise occupied.

It's was Raphs voice he first heard over the headset. Apparently they'd had some sort of interference, or white noise from the disruption caused by the 'dead zone'.

"Leo! Raph! We could really do with your help right about now!" Donnie cried out down the microphone, eyes darting to his many enemies with a hint of dread as his bo staff disposed of another small batch.

"Donnie, what the shell is going on?" Raph growled, the concern underlining his tone would've been perfectly clear if it wasn't for the constant buzzing streaming through the ear phones.

"Foot ninja found us and attacked. We're surrounded! There's too many of them," he could hear the fear in his voice now, but he had no idea whether his brothers got his message, or whether the static had interfered with their line.

"Where… Donnie?" Leo's concerned voice crackled.

"Chamber Street, northern side, where the old warehouses are…" He trailed off when he realised that the callous tone of a dead line rang through his head phones. Hoping that his brothers got his message, he clicked the hang up button, stopping the monotone drone of the taunting phone line.

"Got through, but it cut me off. I don't know whether they got my message," Donnie yelled at Sam and Mikey, biting his lip in trepidation as he somersaulted over a set of foreboding ninja.

"Guess it's just crossed fingers, eh?" Mikey asked as Donnie landed beside him with a soft thud, flashing a hopeful grin at his elder brother whilst his nunchuku dispatched of another Foot ninja.

"This is stupid, there's too many," Sam panted, swords held in an offensive manoeuvre as she blocked another blow, planting a powerful kick onto the chest of her attacker, sending him flying back into another ninja.

"It's like, endless!" Mikey exclaimed, eyes darting around their playing field. Every time they eliminated a large group of Foot, there was more to take their place. "Where are they coming from?"

"I have no idea. But we either need help, or we need to get the shell out of here," Donnie stated, stabbing his staff into the chest of one ninja before swinging it into the face of another.

The three allies stood back to back, surrounded by the seemingly infinite number of Foot, the ray of hope they'd earlier seen being blotted out by the black clad ninja. To passers-by the fight would be nothing more than a smudge on the cityscape, but to those fighting, it was life or death; a matter of the two extremes; the two greatest adventures anyone will ever experience.

And for Michelangelo, that dark adventure edged that bit closer.

The world was getting dark, and there was an amazing shooting pain starting at his head and ending at his lower back, making him fall to his knees. He could faintly hear the voices of Sam and Donnie calling out to him, and he tried as hard as he could to hold onto consciousness, but it slipped from the tips of his fingers. The last thing he remembered was thinking that the roof was incredibly uncomfortable.

Donnie knelt by his youngest brother, concern creasing his face as he stared at the gaping wound in his head, blood pouring from the open skin. He was sure he could even see partial skull, but in the poor light, he couldn't be sure.

All he knew was that it was bad; very bad.

If they didn't get Mikey help stat, he could possibly die from blood loss, or a haemorrhage, or finished off by one of the ninja that they hadn't managed to fight off.

"Donnie!" Sam warned, jumping in front of her two friends and blocking a couple of katana wielding ninja. "I got your back. How's Mikey?" Her voice was steely, the edges softened by the worry that bubbled in her heart.

"We need to get him out of here! His head wound is bad; I don't know how deep it goes. He could bleed out in a matter of minutes if there's a haemorrhage," Donnie told her, delving into his shoulder bag for anything that could stem the bleeding.

Sam didn't say anything in reply, she needed every single last breath, every single ounce of energy to dodge the blows and dance around her friends to protect them from the horde of ninja. Her swords sliced through the air, not caring whether they met flesh or metal. Every time she got the chance, she would glance around her, taking a quick account of the small army that opposed them, and glare at Karai, eyes flicking to Michelangelo's blood as it dripped from her manriki-gusari to stain the rooftop's surface.

_First chance, she is so dead, _Sam thought coldly, knowing that she wouldn't go through with it; there was no chance her ninjitsu skills were advanced enough, but it felt good to imagine Karai's head rolling from her body.

She felt something hard collide with the back of her knee; it took her down, but she quickly rounded on her foe and dealt a deadly blow to his lower abdomen, blood pouring from the large gash as the ninja fell to his demise. But this left her in a bad position. Her knee throbbed dangerously, and she was still half kneeling on the ground as their enemy advanced.

It was a very bad day.

_Where are you Raph, Leo?_ She thought desperately as she pounced onto a nearby attacker, somersaulting over another just to hiss painfully as she landed on her bad knee. Rounding quickly, she dealt with the current situation before having to move straight onto another black clad figure.

"How's he holding up?" She asked Donatello, glancing to the fallen Michelangelo with concern.

"His pulse has weakened, and he's still bleeding pretty badly," Donnie's voice quivered, both his and Mikey's masks held in his hand, slick with his brother's blood as he applied pressure to the head wound.

Deciding that it was best to start looking for a way out, Sam cleared a view path, eyes scanning their surroundings. Every time she did that though, more ninja would fill the gap. It was like they were regenerating or something. It was really frustrating, not to mention tiring.

Pushing the hilt of her sword into the gut of a ninja while snap kicking another in the jaw, she managed to flip herself over into the path of an oncoming shruiken, which she only just managed to dodge, and it still grazed her arm.

"Shit," She cursed, hand grabbing at her arm for a brief moment before taking her anger out on the closest black clad figure.

She then noticed how far she had actually travelled in the fight; Donnie and Mikey were a good few metres away with a dozen or so ninja separating them. Eyes widening as the Foot closed in on her friends, she made a bee line for them, her path blocked by the ninja who made it their personal quest to stop her from protecting her reptilian associates.

"Donnie, look out!" Sam cried out urgently, her swords flying through the air, meeting metal and softer tissue.

Donatello looked up, grabbing for his Bo staff as the Foot encircled him and his fallen brother. He couldn't handle them all by himself _and_ save Mikey! Looking over to Sam who was in a similar predicament, a distressed frown creased his face; he really was by himself.

He watched the Foot advance, their weapons glinting teasingly in the moonlight, and Donnie was sure that if he could see their faces, they would be smirking evilly. His eyes then moved to Karai, who walked slowly passed the fighting Sam, who attempted to lunge at her only to be knocked back by a taller ninja, clothed differently to the rest, but still masked.

"I will personally finish you both off," Karai sneered, drawing her katana menacingly. "For the honour of my father."

"The shredder had no honour," Donatello retorted, standing over his brother after securing the bandanas over Michelangelo's head wound, holding his Bo staff defensively.

Karai growled, lowering herself into an intimidating stance. Each opponent sized each other up, the small fight going on behind them void of all meaning. Their eyes narrowed, and their teeth became clenched; the start of what they could tell would be a fight to the very end.

And so, it began.

Wood met metal; the sound dull, but it reverberated loudly through the air. Both participants grunted under the force of each others weapons, pushing off of them to return with another blow, just to be blocked.

Karai ducked underneath the sweep of Donatellos Bo, landing a well placed kick onto his plastron, knocking him backwards. The teen turtle only just managed to block the next blow she almost thrust into his chest.

Donnie countered with a sharp stab of his staff that was easily blocked by his skilful adversary. He once more swept his Bo at Karai, hoping to knock her down. He only succeeded in making her stumble backward. A perturbed frown alighted his beak, pessimistic thoughts running through his head; could he really win this fight?

His answer soon came in the form of a fatal attack from Karai, disarming him with a quick flick of her katana. He watched in terror as his Bo staff flew from his hand and onto the gravelled roof top. He now had no weapon, and the female ninja was grinning manically, sharpened sword held ominously over his head.

Donnie watched the weapon, feeling a sudden fear wash through him. Was this really the end? After all he'd been through; after all he and his brothers had been through, was Karai really the one to finish him? To finish Mikey?

The turtle narrowed his eyes, a courage that had always existed inside of him surfacing as he thought of his fallen brother. "You can do what you want to me, but you will not lay a hand on Mikey!" He growled dangerously.

"That will not be a problem. Once I finish you, and your little friend," Karai smirked viciously as both pairs of eyes flickered to Sam, who was loosing to a formidable looking Foot ninja. "There will be no one to protect Michelangelo. You will all perish under my blade!"

Donatello closed his eyes and waited for the katana to fall…

"Donnie! Nooo!" Sam cried out painfully, eyes awash with fear as she tried to reach her friend, and failed…

* * *

"Where now fearless?" Raph panted hard, eyes darting this way and that, looking for any sort of street sign or landmark.

"Just keep heading north and look for a large group of Foot," Leo told his red clad brother, the pit of worry in his stomach growing by the second. They needed to get there fast, and they'd already been running for ten minutes since Donnie's call. He just hoped they could hold on…

The street lamps began to dwindle as they entered the more derelict part of New York, and those that still lit the near empty streets flickered uneasily. Luckily for the two ninja, they could make their way across the rooftops easily enough without the aid of light, something they were both thankful for.

Another five minutes passed, and things were beginning to get tense.

"We've got to be near by now? We've been running solid for fifteen god damn minutes!" Raph growled, his unease obvious by the irritation in his voice.

"Just calm down Raph. Save it for the Foot," Leo snapped. _And Karai_, he thought to himself darkly. Wherever there was a large gathering of Foot, the female ninja was sure to be found.

Why she still served the Shredder, even after she knew everything he'd done, mystified him. She continued to throw the fact that 'Oroku Saki' had raised her in his face, but still didn't seem to understand he only ever did that for personal gain. He only ever did _anything_ for personal gain.

But he was gone now. There was no reason for Karai to still be under his dark influence, and Leo wished she could just see that. But she was blinded by her 'honour bound duty' to slay those who destroyed her master.

Leo scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Leo, I think I see them," Raph cried out, squinting into the gloom, pointing to a rippling roof top not far from where they were currently running.

The two brothers changed directions, bounding over the tops of the high rise buildings, scaling those that they couldn't. Nothing was going to stop them from reaching Sam and their brothers.

"That's a helluva lot of Foot," Raph growled as they neared close enough to get a better view of the situation.

Leo didn't like it one little bit. He liked it even less when he noticed he could only see Donnie and Sam. "Where's Mikey?" He panicked.

"I… I can't see him," Raph scanned the rooftop again, jumping onto a nearby ventilation shaft so he could gain an aerial view of the scene. "I think I see him… he's not moving."

Those words stung like a knife. They stabbed Leo's heart repeatedly until all he could feel was protective anger; anger that the Foot would soon feel at the end of his blade. "Let's go kick some Foot ass," Leo growled.

"Thought you'd never ask," Raph plucked his sai from his belt, and ran full pelt to the battle field.

* * *

"Donnie! Nooo!" Sam cried out.

But the blade never touched Donatello's skin.

"Get away from my family," Leo hissed dangerously, his double katana pushing Karai away from his brother roughly.

"Leo!" Donnie almost jumped on his eldest brother with relief. "Where's…"

"Right here bro," Raph answered before the question had even been asked, clearing a path between them and Sam with one fell swoop of his sai and a well placed dragon punch.

"You made it!" Sam smiled, though you couldn't tell, as she ran towards the two elder turtles, joining them in the fight. "I could kiss you!"

"I'll hold you to that," Raph winked as Leo rolled his eyes, weapons raised against the oncoming storm. "Where's Mikey?"

Sam glanced to Donnie, the smile from earlier fading quickly as her eyes filled with concern. "He…"

"He fell," Donnie finished, catching the Bo staff Sam threw to him. "We need to get him out of here, and fast. Otherwise, I don't… He might not…"

"It's alright Don, we're going to get out of here," Leo said sternly, narrowed eyes never leaving Karai. "Do what you can for Mikey now. Raph, Sam and I will clear you a path."

Donatello nodded, kneeling once more beside his youngest brother. All he could do was administer some antibiotics and keep pressure on the makeshift bandage. He didn't have the equipment to do anything else. Really, he needed a new bandage.

"If you give up now, I will make your deaths quick," Karai told them icily, swirling her katana through the night air. "If you don't, I will make you suffer."

"You can try lady," Raph growled. "But you won't get close enough to leave even a scratch."

"We'll see about that," Karai snapped.

With a quick wave of her hand, the battle commenced.

This time though, the allies had the upper hand.

With a warrior's cry, Sam, Raph, and Leo charged into battle, weapons clashing against their opponents; blades dripping already with the blood of the Foot. They'd killed before to survive, and this time they were fighting for the life of a loved one; there was no mercy.

However, so could be said for the opposition.

The Foot left there marks, slashing against the skin; deadly shruiken flying through the air only to miss by mere millimetres. Raph found himself plucking a star shaped shruiken from his shell, and Leo was now nursing a large gash across his shoulder. Sam played host to numerous cuts and bruises, some already congealing from the previous battle.

"Why do you do this to yourself Karai?" Leo growled, katana flashing through the air as he and the female ninja waltzed across the rooftop, ducking and weaving beneath each others attacks; only to counter with something stronger. "The Shredder is gone!"

"He was my father, Leonardo," She answered, eyes narrowed at the blue clad turtle. "I will never betray him."

"The shredder was evil. Think of everything he's done; to you, to us, to everybody!" Leo tried reasoning with her. He'd lost count of how many times they'd danced this deadly dance. "How can you follow someone like that? He had no honour!"

"Would you turn your back so easily on your father, Leonardo," Karai spat, crying out as she leapt at the turtle, only to have her attack blocked.

Leo kicked her away, watching as the woman flew to the ground just to simultaneously pick herself up again. "Stop this madness Karai! You know it's wrong!"

Karai glared at the turtle, knowing that the fight she fought was a stale mate, even as she went once more into the thick of it. Somehow, she needed to gain the upper hand…

And she saw her chance.

Back flipping to a small ruckus going on behind her, she snuck up on the opposing female ninja, grabbing her by the mask and twisting her round so that the three conscious turtles could see what was going on.

"Stop!" She cried out, blade hovering so close to Sam's skin she could feel the steel beneath her balaclava. "Release your weapons, or she dies!"

Damn it, Leo thought, hands clasping firmly around the hilt of his Katana.

He looked around. All battle had ceased, and everyone now stared at the two female ninja, one of which was currently held in the most uncompromising position.

"Weapons, Leonardo. Or she dies!" Karai pulled the blade closer, if that was possible, to Sam's jugular.

Sam narrowed her eyes determinedly, staring at the leader of her four reptilian friends. "Don't you dare, or I will cut you down myself. _Get Mikey_ _out_ _of here_…" She swallowed hard as the blade cut shallowly into her neck, a definite sign to tell her to shut up.

Raph looked to Leo.

Donnie looked to Leo.

Leo looked back at them both, and then to Mikey. He was their leader; their brother. It was his decision.

The silent rooftop rang out with the clang of two katana blades, soon followed by that of two sai and a Bo staff.

"Fools," Karai grinned. "Now you will all die. But first, I will make you watch as I kill your friend."

Sam felt her balaclava being removed from her face, and closed her eyes, only opening them when she felt the cool rush of the night air on her cheeks. Her eyes locked onto Leonardo's, pleading with him to pick up his weapons and run. The eldest turtle just looked back at her with a sad frown, shaking his head ever so slightly.

"Don't you touch her!" Raph growled, making a move to stop her. "Or I swear, I will rip you a new one you little…"

"Whatever you do, the outcome will be the same," Karai stated simply. "Say goodbye."

The blade lifted ever so slightly, before descending on Sam like a bullet train, intent on robbing her of her life.

"No!"

Every single one of the warriors looked in confusion as a solitary Foot ninja grabbed the blade from Karai, knocking her backwards and releasing Sam from her grasp.

"You traitor!" Karai roared, only to be kicked to the ground, momentarily stunning her.

"Get out of here," The Foot ninja told Sam, thrusting Karai's sword into the ground just to draw his own katana blade.

Sam stood, shock written all over her face. "Why did…"

"Now!" The ninja turned to Sam for a brief moment, a desperate undertone to his voice, and also something else… something Sam couldn't quite place.

"Sam, come on!" Raph yelled hurriedly, picking up his Sai as he ran after Leo and Donnie who supported the wounded Michelangelo.

The teen took no time in turning on her heels and bounding after the four turtles, but not without chancing one last look back as the horde of Foot ninja closed in on their new target…

At least they were safe, for the moment. All they needed to worry about now was getting Mikey home alive. They _had_ to get Mikey home alive.

But something still bugged Sam all the way back to the lair.

Why did that Foot ninja save them?

* * *

**A/n**: Oh my god! Loved writing this chapter! I hope to get at least one more update in before Christmas… Cross fingers. Please, feed the hungry authoress.

_totsugeki shimasu – _Charge/ attack

_manriki-gusari_ – It's a Japanese chain weapon with lethal weights on either end.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Christmas is almost on my doorstop! We break up from college… about 3 days before this most wondrous holiday (how mean is that!). But I am going to a medical conference in Nottingham for four days! Yay!

I do not own the TMNT, or any affiliated characters.

_- A thousand miles begins with a single step -_

"Get him to the infirmary, quickly," Donnie ordered Leo and Raph, who'd taken over the task of carrying the fallen Michelangelo. "And keep constant pressure to that wound!"

No one disputed his order. Donnie was the one with all the medical know how; he'd taken it upon himself to become the resident doctor after noticing that they're family desperately needed one. They'd all been trained in basic first aid, but nothing as big as this. If anyone could patch Mikey up, it was him.

Most of the medical supplies were actually kept in the infirmary, but Donnie needed to gather some towels and chuck his duffel bag unceremoniously into his lab. By the time he reached the medical bay, Raph, Leo and Sam were trying to get Mikey into a comfortable position in which he could be treated. If it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation, Donnie would've laughed.

"Prop him sitting up so I can treat the laceration," Donnie told them, wandering over and removing the makeshift bandana bandage, putting them in a small dish that sat on a movable counter top. "Sam, get me a bowl of luke-warm water. Raph, can you get me a needle and some thread. Leo, get me some anaesthesia."

All three orders were carried out with quick efficiency, and soon, all four of them stood around the unconscious Michelangelo once more.

"Sam, I need you to clean the laceration, and straighten the edges of the broken skin," Donnie told her, watching her eyes carefully. They widened in shock, and he noticed her swallow hard, shaking her head as if to say that she couldn't do it. "You have the smallest hands. Please."

Sam looked to Mikey, and nodded, rolling up her sleeves and taking a clothe from the table. Dipping it in the bowl of water that stood by her side, she gently stroked at the wound, taking away the congealing blood and grit that clung to the broken skin. It wasn't as deep as she'd thought, and she couldn't see any skull. It relieved some of the tension that had built up in her chest.

Rinsing out the clothe, she went back to cleaning the wound. Soon, she was able to take some sterile scissors to the ragged edges of the laceration, straightening them out, and in doing so, making it easier for Donnie to sew up later.

"There," Sam squinted at the wound, finishing it up by wiping it once more with the clothe, leaving it in the bowl of bloody water after she'd done.

"Thank you," Donatello said, readying the anaesthesia for Mickey. "Now, I'm going to need some space. I'll call you all when I'm finished."

Reluctantly the three companions left in silence, shutting the infirmary door gently behind them. The silence was awkward, but no one seemed able to break it; no one wanted to. It allowed them to think; to ponder- maybe it wasn't the best idea, but it's all they could really do.

"My sons! My sons, what is going on? Where are your brothers?" Master Splinter hurried from his room, the shoji doors remaining oddly open behind him.

Leo's shoulders stiffened naturally as the task fell upon him as leader to break the news to his sensei and beloved father; it was something he was scarily familiar with. "Mikey… Mikey got hit badly and fell. Donnie's trying to fix him up as we speak," he did nothing to hide the worry in his voice, but tried his best to keep his composure strong. After all, the last thing his brothers needed was a broken leader.

Master Splinter's face took a while to fall, and you could pin point the exact moment at which the news sunk in. It was that single moment where the concerned frown finally took over his muzzle, and the sorrowful eyes found the closed doorway to the infirmary, where it sat longingly for a while, almost hoping that his youngest son would burst through the doorway.

"That woman, Karai, got him with her manriki-gusari," Sam swallowed, eyes staring at the infirmary door while her arms hugged her shivering body. "She came out of nowhere…"

Why was it always the innocent that got hurt? Why was it always those who had only done good on this earth to suffer the most? They were questions to which Sam was sure had no answers; at least no answers that could condone the pain and justify the misery.

"Michelangelo is strong, he will be fine," the aged rat said softly after a moment, the conviction in his voice giving hope to the three teens that stood around him. "And Donatello is a genius, I have no doubt in his abilities to heal your brother. Yes, I believe Michelangelo will be fine…" Though the obviously forced smile he then flashed at the small group did nothing to quell any of their nerves.

The clicking of his cane was the only noise that brought them all back from their trance like staring as they milled around the entrance to the infirmary, waiting to be called back in by Donnie so they could comfort the unconscious turtle that was currently getting stitches in the back of his head.

"When I find Karai, I am so gonna… God, she is just… when I get my hands on her, she's dead," Raph concluded dangerously, breaking the silence with the gruff anger of his voice. He began to pace over a small area, fingers tapping over the hilt of his sai, his eyes darting from the floor, to the infirmary, and to his blade.

No one had the heart to tell him to calm down. After all, everyone has a different way of dealing with their emotions. Some people acted assertively; displaying their feelings through anger. Others remained boiling under the surface, a strong poker face masking what they truly felt. And some people went quiet, became nervous and fearful. All they could do for each other was give comfort.

Master Splinter laid a soft paw onto the arm of the fuming emerald green turtle, father and son's eyes meeting for a brief moment. Raphael exhaled deeply, before looking back to the infirmary, no words needing to be said between the two mutants as the red clad turtle ceased in his incessant pacing.

There was a brief moment where complete silence reigned over the group; it was so quiet, you could hear the pitter-patter of the tunnels that sat outside the lair; the drip-drop of the water that splattered the concrete drainage system. You could also hear the creak of the infirmary door as it slowly opened to reveal a drained looking Donatello.

"I've done what I can," He said, stepping back to allow the group of four through. "Preferably, I would like him awake, due to the high risk of concussion. But that can't be helped. We're just going to have to wait." Donnie had a tired frown on his face, but in his eyes, there was that glimmer of hope; of a satisfactory conclusion.

"My son," Master Splinter almost ran to Michelangelo's side, taking up post by his bed. Here he would remain for a while, until he felt that his son was going to be safe, and he could finally leave him with his brothers in peace. But he doubted he could leave his son's side for too long; especially if he hadn't woken by that point.

Raph watched Mikey as he sat, propped up quite peacefully against the bed. His eyes barely moved behind his eyelids, but he could see by the smooth rhythmic rising and falling of his chest that nothing was drastically wrong. Yet, something seemed off to Raph; Mikey just looked too at peace, and it worried him. Mikey was never at peace; he was constantly on a high, like a random bouncing ball that just wouldn't stop. He tensed with concern as he stood at the foot of the bed, Donnie standing quite still beside him. Chancing a quick glance at the intellectual turtle, Raph caught his eyes, and was calmed by the determination he saw and the small smile that flickered upon his brother's beak.

"We need to take turns watching him until he wakes up, and even then, I don't want to leave him by himself," Donnie explained, his eyes not leaving the still form of his brother. When he did look up, however, he noticed the sudden panic across the faces of those in the room. "It's just a precaution."

"I shall take first watch," Master Splinter announced. "Then Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Samantha can take the final watch. We shall rotate the sequence every three hours."

"Yes sensei," they chorused in reply, the times already running through their minds.

"I will wake you, Leonardo, when it is your time. Now go get some rest, all of you," the wizened rat ordered whilst pulling an old cushioned oak chair up to the side of the infirmary bed.

They were, at first, unwilling to leave, but from the stern stare that slowly bore into them from the aged rat, they found themselves walking from Michelangelo's side with a concerned back glance.

And Sam couldn't help but feel a little responsible.

After all, they were out there looking for _her_ brother; they had split up because Donnie thought they would cover more ground looking for _her_ brother; and her brother wouldn't even be missing if she'd have been a little quicker on her feet.

After thinking those thoughts, she just felt even worse. What right did she have to blame herself? All she ever did was feel sorry for herself, when really, she should be worrying about Mikey, and trying to be there for Donnie, Leo and Raph. She felt literally sick inside, and her stomach began bubbling uncomfortably.

She sighed shakily, rubbing her eyes to try and rid herself of the sleep that had settled itself in on the corners of her eyes. It had only just dawned on her that she was still wearing the black coloured ninja clothing that had now accumulated several holes, a few speckles of congealed blood, and a lot of dirt.

"I'm gonna…" Sam exhaled heavily. "I'm gonna grab a shower." Then, without another word, she walked away, the opening and closing of the bathroom door ringing through the silence.

Donnie let a small acknowledging smile adorn his beak before it faded away as he watched Sam's back disappear into the lairs corridors. Instead, it was replaced with a respectful stare, filled with gratitude. Without her, he didn't think they would've lasted as long as they did with the Foot.

"Is Mike really gonna be okay, Don?" Leo asked, his face creasing with concern as his leadership façade falling away to reveal that of the big brother they all loved.

"Medically or personally?" Donatello replied, rubbing the back of his aching neck, his shoulder cracking in relief. Noticing the unimpressed look in his brother's eyes, he sighed, "It was a bad wound, and I'm not a professional Doctor. I did all that I could for him, and, in my opinion…" Sighing again, his eyes shifted to the infirmary door. "I think he'll pull through."

"It's Mikey, course he'll pull through," Raph grunted, though there was an underlying nervousness that made the conviction in his voice less assuring.

"We're just going to have to wait," Leo stated sullenly, arms folding protectively across his plastron. "And hope."

* * *

"I've told you before boy, there's no way out," a bored voice rang out from the relaxed figure who was currently stretched out across a regal looking armchair. His eyes flickered to a small nine year old boy, who stood at a door, bashing the hard oak wood with his hands. Why did he have to baby-sit the brat? 

"All you're going to do is tire yourself out," there was a hint of irritation in the male's voice as he twirled a small tanto between his fingers.

There was a tiny yelp from the young boy whom now cradled his hand against his chest, tears being held back by the fierce determination in his heart. His eyes narrowed dangerously as he stared at the lazed male.

"Sammy's going to come for me," He spat, his voice shaking as it rang out through the bare room. "I know she will."

The laughter that was emitted from the figure as he swung around to stand was icy and cruel, cutting through Danny like a knife. His amusement was clear; that such a young boy could have so much fire in his heart. "You know _chiisai __otoko no ko_, your mouth is gonna get you into a lot of trouble one day," he drawled, a dangerous smirk falling upon his face.

Danny was terrified. Everything about this place scared him; from the bare walls, to the people who surrounded him. There was nothing cheerful; nothing that helped him. The only thing that kept him going was the thought that his sister would find him; that she would save him, and she would take him back to the turtles and they would live happily ever after.

"Your sister isn't coming. She doesn't care for you," the male told him spitefully, the glee at causing the nine year old distress obvious. "She'll be glad you're gone. You're too much trouble. She'll be able to do whatever she wants now…"

"Shut up! **Shut up**!" Danny covered his ears with the palms of his hands, shaking his head in agony. "Sammy would never…She's…she's going to come! I know she will!"

"Poor little _maigo_," the man tutted condescendingly, a smile floating across his face. "You really think she's going to come?" He laughed, "She's better off now. She's happy. She'll do better without you. She doesn't want you anymore! She never wanted to look after you."

"No!" Danny cried, tears beginning to form at the corners of his eyes. "She doesn't think that! She…Sammy loves me. We're family…Family!"

"Family," he snorted in wry amusement. "Family's caused nothing but pain for Samantha. Now that she's got the turtles, she doesn't need you."

"Not true! You lie," his voice quivered with the looming sobs that threatened to ripple his being. "You liar!"

"She doesn't love you," He cooed surreptitiously, taking another step towards the young boy. "You're just a nuisance."

"I'm not listening," Danny plugged his fingers in his ears, eyes shut tightly against the figure in front of him. "Not listening. I'm _not_ listening."

"Don't believe me?" A wry smirk flittered across his face as he knelt before the boy, knowing full well he could still hear him. "Then take a look _Ryou_."

The tanto in his hand pointed at a hazy oval of air that started to swirl and smoke mysteriously. It had appeared randomly out of nowhere, and was now taking on a bluish tinge that twinkled in Danny's eyes as he stared in horrified awe. Then, shapes began to materialize in the oval, shapes that began to take on recognisable forms.

Danny gasped quietly as he saw his sister and the turtles sitting around the table in the turtle's lair, along with Casey, April and Master Splinter. They were… laughing; even Raphael was laughing. They were drinking hot chocolate, and laughing; having a great time… without him. His face dropped, tears clinging to the corners of his eyes.

"See, they don't need you," the man stated. "They're getting along fine without you. In fact, they're happier without you."

"No," Danny whispered, shaking his head. "No!"

He backed away from the horrid vision before him, looking every which way, trying to find an escape, trying to get home. This wasn't real; they weren't his family. He knew it in his heart; Sammy would search to the ends of the earth to find him, and so would the turtles.

"You liar!" Danny cried out, fists clenched furiously at his sides. "That's not them!"

The male scowled, waving the vision window away with a sharp hand motion as he stood tall before the nine year old, towering dangerously above him, the tanto gleaming ominously in his hand. "I'd be a bit more respectful if I were you," he growled.

"Calm down Kaito," an older male opened the door, addressing the tanto wielding psychopath. He was sharply dressed, and had features that were similar to the man who had been guarding Danny for the past… however long he'd been in the bare room. "We want the boy unharmed."

"You try being stuck with him," the male Danny presumed was named Kaito glared at him. "Doesn't believe a word I say."

"Can you blame him," the other figure smiled before walking in, shutting the door behind him. "Now, Danny, why would we lie to you? All we want to do is help."

"You took me away from Sammy! You killed people," Danny backed away from the oncoming male, breathing starting to become quicker and heavier.

"No we didn't," he said, all too patiently. "We saved you from some bad people, and brought you here. Don't you trust us?"

"No," the nine year old didn't trust this man one bit, or his accomplice. "You're the bad people!"

"That's where you've got us all wrong," he persisted, his voice pleading with the young boy to understand. "We didn't want to have to tell you this but…" He exhaled slowly, crouching down so he was eye level with Danny. "Your sister and the turtles are the bad people. They abandoned you, just like your brother did when he left. _We_ saved you."

Danny shook his head in utter and complete disbelief, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Ben didn't abandon us! And Sammy wouldn't… she just wouldn't! The turtles are good. I know they are. They all are!"

The nine year old ran from the two men to the door, and began to repeatedly bang once more on the thick oak wood. "Let me out!" he yelled. "Let me go home! I want to go home!"

Kaito looked to the other man with a raised eyebrow, as if to say '_see what I mean'_. The other man just returned the look with a sharp glare, rolling his eyes as he stood and marched over to the boy. "Now, listen," you could tell by the sharpness of his voice that his patience was wearing thin; very thin. "You are to stay here until you learn some proper manners. Then we might think about talking some more. Kaito, come with me."

Danny was brushed aside roughly by the two men who left through the oak door, the only door in the entire room. But not before Kaito had whispered poisonous threats in his ear, the cold blade of his tanto pressed dangerously at his jugular. Needless to say, Kaito left with a satisfied smirk, the smell of fear that clung to the boy almost erotic. After all, that was his job; to strike fear into the hearts of the unbreakable; to make grown men sink to their knees and beg for mercy while they sobbed their last tears. A nine year old boy would be child's play.

As soon as it closed, the oak door began to thrum with the beating of fists, shouts creeping through the cracks of the door, but soon both lessened. Soon, all that could be heard from the room was the echoing sobs of a nine year old boy who just wanted to go home.

* * *

"Traitor!" Karai yelled, her hand striking the cheek of the ninja who had dared take away her victory. His face was black and blue, and he was on his knees before her, cradling a broken arm and a beaten stomach. 

"Mistress, please, listen," he spluttered, eyes staring at the furious female figure before him.

"Takumi, you have back-talked one too many times," she snapped viciously, kicking his gut sharply, her eyes narrowing in disgust.

Groaning in pain for a moment, waiting for the sudden loss of air to subside, the kneeling ninja spat blood onto the floor beside him. "That girl…" He hissed. "That girl you were going to kill was my sister!"

"Don't lie to me," Karai growled, slapping him once more, watching the blood drip down a graze in his cheek with satisfaction.

"I'm not lying!" He cried out desperately, his whole body aching from the beating he'd been subjected to. "I'd know her face anywhere…" He sounded almost regretful; pain and shock written across his face.

Karai stared at the male before her, curiosity filling her eyes. "You are not lying to me," She said, almost as a passing thought, the cogs turning in her head. "This is an opportunity I will not pass…"

"Mistress?" Takumi was confused, his eyes staring at the intimidating female with a hint of fear.

"She was with the turtles," Karai stated. "She was, _protecting_, the turtles. This means she knows them, she is privy to their lives. And _you_ are the key." A small malicious smile passed across her lips, "I will honour my father yet."

Lest to say, Takumi did not like where this conversation was going, or the smile on Karai's face. "I'm not sure what you mean mistress," he swallowed.

"You're going to have a reunion, Takumi," Karai told him, clicking her fingers sharply, calling a small group of servants to her side. "And you are going to deliver the turtles to me."

* * *

**A/n:** Oooo, plots starting to build up now! Okay, don't expect an update too soon, and apologies for the shortness of this chapter. 

chiisai otoko no ko – Little boy

maigo - Lost child

Kaito - From Japanese _(kai)_ "sea, ocean" combined with _(to)_, which refers to the constellation Ursa Major, or _(to)_ "soar, fly".


	13. Chapter 13

**A/n**: Okay, so this is a bit later than planned. But I have a whole new fanfic concept that is burning in my mind, and I've been doing a lot of fan art on it. So, apologies.

I'm afraid I don't own the TMNT.

_- Cast a stone in the lake and the ripples will return to you. -_

They'd been watching Michelangelo solidly for the past twenty-eight hours, and there was still no change in his state. Still he slept upon the soft mattress of the infirmary bed, the lighting dim, and the battle that had caused his injuries now just a bad memory. His face was placid, the thin line that was his mouth stretched to a soft frown as he dreamed ever so gently beneath closed eyelids.

Sam found herself staring at the sleeping Michelangelo as she sat in the comfy armchair by his side on her second three hour watch. All she could see as she watched him was Karai, standing there with blood dripping from her manriki-gusari, that thin malicious smirk crossing her dark features; and Michelangelo, falling to the rooftop floor, a dark red liquid flowing from his head wound.

Swallowing the lump that caught in her throat, she rubbed her eyes, trying to rid herself of that horrible image. A shaky sigh escaped her lips as she knelt her elbows upon her knees, her head held in her hands. As she sat back up again, she looked at the quiet turtle, and took his hand in hers, her fingers running over his calloused skin.

"Come on Mikey," Her voice croaked, banishing the hot feeling of tears behind her eyes. "You can pull through this. You just gotta wake up."

She rubbed her fingers over the top of his hand, the reptile's skin quite cool beneath her hands. She softly brought his hand to her lips, where she placed a soft kiss onto his knuckles, letting a single salty tear slide down her feminine cheek.

Sighing shakily, she placed his green skinned hand back upon the sheets, but didn't let it go. With her free hand, she roughly brushed away the tears from her glistening eyes, inhaling deeply to try and rid herself of the burning feeling in her throat. She couldn't loose Michelangelo as well as her little brother; she needed the youngest turtle- he was her insanity, if you could believe that. And he kept her sane.

Slowly, she began to hum. It was just a small tune, nothing elaborate or special- Just a small theme tune that always made Mikey smile. He didn't particularly like the cartoon, but it was the mystery of the black caped crusader that drew him into the world of Gotham City and the Batman. The mere thought made a soft smile surface onto her lips.

Sam closed her eyes, imaginings of Mikey swinging alongside the batman in his turtle titan costume adding to the comical element of the tune she currently sung to the sleeping turtle.

"Always knew you liked my costume," A weak groggy voice chuckled psychically from the bed.

The sudden noise made Sam jump about ten feet into the air, her eyes shooting wide open as she let go of Mikey's hand, trying to gain some sort of composure from her frantic flailing. "You… you're… Mikey!" She gawped, a disbelieving laugh on her lips.

"Yeah, that's me," he smiled back groggily, shifting in his bed to a more comfortable position.

Sam ignored the smart aleck remark, and just laughed jovially, pouncing onto the youngest turtle and wrapping her arms around him. "You're awake! Oh, you brilliant, fantastic turtle!" She placed a warm kiss on his cheek. "Wonderful, wonderful, turtle," She placed another kiss on the opposite cheek. "Michelangelo, you… oh, don't you ever scare me like that again!" She tried to put on a stern glare, but couldn't wipe the relieved smile from her face.

"Hey, moving a bit fast. Could at least buy me a drink first," He smiled, a rose tint warming his green cheeks.

"I'm just…you're okay! You're awake, and you're okay," She clasped his hand again and grinned widely, wiping a happy tear from her eye. "You are okay, right?"

"My head kinda aches a bit, and I feel so stiff…" Mikey grimaced as he sat, rubbing some sleep from his eyes with the hand that wasn't held in Sam's. "But I is good dude-ette," He smiled.

Sam just smiled softly in reply, before letting go of his calloused green hand, "I have to go and get the others, otherwise they'll have a right go at me." With one last smile, she ran out the door, glancing back at the last moment before the door swung shut behind her.

Mikey laughed at her eagerness as she swept out the door, leaving a light atmosphere in her wake. In truth, he had been awake for a while, just listening to her hum the batman theme. He'd had to prevent himself from joining in at points, especially when she slipped up. It was amazing to think she could be so happy, what with her brother missing.

As he listened for the sound of feet, he distinctly heard Sam squealing with delight at his brothers, and then hearing Leo telling her to calm down. It was quite amusing for him to sit there and listen to the chaotic scene playing outside in the lair, and wishing he could actually see it. It was strange to not be in the chaos. Soon though, his wish would come true, as thumping feet came hurdling towards his room, and his brothers bundled through the door along with Sam and Master Splinter bringing up the rear.

"Mikey!" His brother's chorused happily as they all jumped on him, not literally, but definitely verbally.

"I'm glad you're awake…"

"You cheeseball…"

"If we'd have lost you…"

"My sons! My son's, calm down," Master Splinter pushed through the jovial raucous, a smile alighting his muzzle as he stood by his now awake sons bed. "Michelangelo, I am glad you are awake," he hugged his youngest. "So glad…"

"Yeah, you knuckle head," Raphael smiled affectionately, giving his youngest brother a light smack on the arm.

"Hey!" Michelangelo pouted, holding his arm dramatically. "Taking advantage of the wounded like that- Rude turtle."

"So, how are you actually feeling?" Donnie spoke up, smiling all the time he talked to his brother, even though he now needed to go into medic mode. "Any headaches? Nausea? Any signs of vertigo?"

Michelangelo blinked disbelievingly at his brother, a small smile dawning on his face before he let out an amused chuckle, "Note to Doctor Donatello, it was a bump on the nogin. No lasting damage."

"Might have destroyed the last few brain cells you have," Raph teased lightly, earning a playful glare off his brother.

Donnie rolled his eyes, making Mikey lean forward so he could double check his stitches. "Well, your wound looks better at least. And I take it from your answer that you've presented no such symptoms?"

"That's a big ten four Doctor Donnie," Mikey smiled as he was released from his brother's prodding fingers, his hand being slapped lightly away as he went to reach around to his wound.

"No touchy," Donatello chastised gently. "They'll need to stay in for about two weeks, but the wound won't be fully healed for another month or so. You're going to have to be careful washing as well."

"He never washes anyway," Raph grumbled light heartedly, the twitch of a smile curling the corners of his lips.

"Hey! I take my monthly shower," Mikey pouted indignantly, going along with the insult, the twinkle in his eyes suggesting that he enjoyed the friendly banter.

Sam crinkled her nose in disgust, rolling her eyes and grinning at the turtle brothers, "Well, I'm just glad you're awake. You must be hungry? Want something to eat?"

Mikey pondered this dramatically for a moment, one hand tapping on his plastron where his stomach would be. "You know, I think I am," He smirked jovially, his eyes locking onto Sams. "Pancakes please, with a large layer of honey, and some of those ice cream sprinkles! Oo, Oo! And some chocolate."

"I think I'm going to barf," Sam shook her head, laughing disbelievingly at the youngest turtle as each of his brother's groaned exasperatedly at his choice for a meal. "But fine, I shall make you pancakes! Even though your choice of topping sounds utterly gross."

With that, she bounced out of the room, ignoring the playful glare from Michelangelo, flashing a sincere, almost mischievous smile as she disappeared behind the closing door. Soon the group began to hear the mumblings and chink of pans that signalled the beginnings of Mikey's order.

"She spoils you," Leo smirked, folding his arms across his plastron in an accusing manner.

"It's all in the charm and the baby blue eyes bro," Mikey grinned innocently, a cheeky glint alighting said baby blue eyes as he looked to his eldest brother. "You're always saying to use my initiative."

"Not like that," Leo groaned, rubbing his eyes as he let out a disbelieving laugh. "I guess I should be glad that you actually listen to me."

"What?" Mikey asked audaciously, raising an eyebrow at his eldest brother who directed a playful glare at him, the smirk on his beak telling Michelangelo that he wouldn't be in trouble for his cheek.

"Hey! You know what I've just realised!" Mikey cried out triumphantly, looking directly at Raphael with an egotistical smirk. "Raphie can't hit me upside the head anymore," he sang irritably, a giant grin stretching his cheeks.

Raph frowned, thinking about his youngest siblings comment carefully. "I'll just give ya a dead arm instead," He smiled darkly, cracking his knuckles to a tiny '_eep_' from Michelangelo.

Rolling his eyes, Donatello now knew what a handful he was going to have with Michelangelo's injury. It was going to be bad enough with the youngest turtle's hyperactive-ness, but now he was going to have to listen to him moan about a dead arm all the time too. "Just as long as you don't open the wound again," he said in early surrender.

"You're supposed to defend you're wonderful patient!" Mikey exclaimed shrilly at Donatello, taking a cautious glance at his menacing red clad brother to his right, and missing the snort of amusement from the purple clad terrapin on his left.

"If you went any higher, only dogs would be able to hear you," Leo teased, rolling his eyes as he rubbed his delicate ear drum from the soprano onslaught of Michelangelo's over-zealous nature.

Mikey was about to retort when Sam came bumbling through the door, arms holding a tray on which sat a plate piled with pancakes, slathered in the choice toppings of the wounded turtle. "Voila," she grinned, presenting her masterpiece to the eyes of the five mutants. "Pancakes a'la Mikey."

"You are a human after my own mutated heart," Mikey whimpered with joy, watching the pancakes hungrily as they were placed in front of him, a glass of water sitting next to the plate.

"Seriously though, the toppings you chose couldn't clash more if…" She faded her sentence as she began to watch the young turtle wolf down the meal, completely ignoring anything she was saying. "Glad I could be of help," She deadpanned, raising an eyebrow at the orange clad reptile, earning a snigger off Raph.

"What's so funny?" She asked the red clad turtle, folding her arms and tapping her foot menacingly on the concrete floor.

"Nothing," he said quickly, flashing a wide eyed innocent look that suited him as well as stripes would suit a giraffe. This time, it was Sam's turn to snigger.

"Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn," Leo teased Raph lightly, nudging his younger brother with his elbow, who soon sent him a playful glare.

"My compliments to ze chef," Mikey smiled happily, patting the area on his plastron where his stomach would be. He downed half a glass of water before burping happily, leaning back against the make shift bed with content.

Sam blinked in shock at the short amount of time taken for Michelangelo to demolish the plateful of sweetened goodies. All she could do was gape like a fish for a moment before a small smile overtook her, "Thank you. I guess."

Master Splinter rolled his eyes happily at his son, glad that his battle did not mark his personality. Then again, the old rat wondered, there was little that could. "Well at least you are awake and happy my son," he said, laying a paw onto his son's green arm. "You will be excused from training today and tomorrow, and will not participate in sparing until the stitches are removed."

The triumphant grin that crept slyly onto Michelangelo's face made Sam giggle, especially when Raph and Don took up glaring jealously at their youngest brother. It was no secret that they all took to grabbing any excuse they could to get out of training; except for Leo. It's not that they didn't like it; it just got too repetitive for them sometimes. When Master Splinter's back was turned, Michelangelo took to mocking his brother's silently, not that it went unnoticed by his father.

"But, of course, you will make up for your lost training when you are well," the aged rat smiled, turning back to his son for a brief moment.

Mikey's jaw dropped incredulously as his older brothers and Sam began to snigger at his instructions. "Yes, sensei," he murmured, but consoled himself with the fact that he still got those few days off.

"I will leave you to rest now Michelangelo," Master Splinter smiled, patting his sons arm fondly before leaving the infirmary, his tell-tale cane tapping across the concrete floor.

"Well done lame brain," Raph grinned good naturedly once Master Splinter was safely out of the room.

"Dude, I still get a couple of days off," Mikey grinned enthusiastically, lacing his fingers across his plastron as he watched Raph glare playfully at him.

"Exactly, and you will spend them resting," Sam chastised him gently, eyes flicking to Donatello for back up. "Nothing strenuous; no running about; no bashing your head… _Rest_."

"But… but…" Mikey stammered, looking with pleading eyes towards his purple clad brother.

"I'm afraid she's right Mikey," Donnie said with a small smile. "You can still play your video games and watch TV, but nothing that'll make you jump around like a Mexican jumping bean."

"Which is pretty much everything," Raph snorted with wry amusement.

"Which also means, no annoying Raph to the point at which his head explodes," Donatello raised an eyebrow at his red clad brother, as if telling him that he should at least _attempt _to keep his anger under control.

The young turtle sighed indignantly, allowing himself to slide into the bedding. He calmed himself as he repeated the words 'TV' and 'Video games' over and over in his head, and he slowly grew to love the idea of 'rest'; as it were. "I guess I can live with that," he pouted.

"Good," Sam stated, folding her arms decisively across her chest. "If you don't, I'm gonna kick you're skinny little ass."

"My ass is anything but skinny, and little," Mikey exclaimed, recoiling as he received a very stern glare from the young woman. "Um, I promise I'll be good?"

"You'd better," Sam smiled serenely, an underlying ghost of menace lining her voice.

* * *

He couldn't believe he was doing this; he couldn't believe that he had actually agreed. It went against everything he lived for; everything he'd trained for over the years. He was stronger than this; he could've said no- could've walked away then and there.

That, and the sewers of New York City completely stank, and he was sure the open wounds he had would become infected, especially since they didn't seem to want to stop bleeding.

His breath hitched painfully as he leant against the wall, trying to build up some much needed energy. He didn't know how long he'd been down there, or how long he'd been walking. Hell, he didn't even know the time of day. He'd tried to climb a ladder to check on the streets above, but that had ended horribly as the solid sewer ground had met him with an unnaturally painful thud.

Damn Karai and her stupid plans. Damn the fact that she equalled him in Ninjitsu. And damn the fact that his sister was in league with the mutant turtles.

Scowling through the gloom, he clasped the hilt to his katana, his knuckles turning white as he pushed himself off the sewer wall and returned to the endless trudging through the dank depths of the underground streets of New York. If he didn't come across a sign of the turtles soon, he was sure he'd go mad. All these tunnels looked the same, even to a trained ninja like himself. The fact that he had no light didn't help matters.

Hissing in disgust as his foot slipped from the relatively dry walkway and into the shallow sewage river that ran beside him, the black clad male swore loudly, the single Japanese profanity ringing loudly through the round tunnels, and draining a large amount of his energy.

Panting heavily and leaning against the wall, he slid down until he sat, less than comfortably, on the slimy concrete floor. He grimaced painfully, placing his hand over the slash wound on his stomach, hoping to stem some of the blood loss as his head began to cloud over.

Now things were just going from bad to worse. If he didn't find help- wanted or otherwise- soon, then he didn't think he'd be alive to need the help.

Leaning backwards, he let his head loll on his shoulders, and briefly allowed himself the luxury of closing his weary eyes. Tiredness had begun to slowly sweep over him, and tugged temptingly at his weakened muscles and bruised body.

He looked down at the gash in his leg, and the piece of glass protruding from it. He winced as he moved the limb. He hadn't taken it out for fear of how far it had penetrated the muscle, and how much more blood he'd lose. But now, he didn't care. Not anymore. So, he gripped the glass tightly between his fingers, and bit his lip, yanking it free. A loud cry escaped his lips as he immediately put a hand to the open cut, hoping to stop any more blood from leaving his body.

His chest heaved and fell with greedy gasps of air as he sloppily threw the glass into the sewer water, the shard making a small splash as it disappeared from view. He didn't even know how it had gotten in there, but he had a pretty good idea that it was when Karai had chucked him through a window. She'd said that it would appeal to the turtle's sensitivity if he was wounded; so she'd wounded him- a lot more than he was happy with; or that was necessary.

Why did he always manage to get himself into these sorts of situations? Before with his sister, then Japan, and now Karai- he'd only joined the foot as a cover; that and it was nice to be with other ninja.

Growling, he hit the floor beside him in frustration. He'd followed the Hokkaido clan from Japan all the way back to New York; joined the foot as a cover, and now he didn't even have the chance to gain answers and act his revenge. Stupid fate; stupid bad luck; stupid ancient rivalry; stupid Karai! His plans were ruined because she had to go all high and mighty and exert her authority over him.

Now he was lying in the underground sewage system of New York city, possibly bleeding to death, without having the chance to ever apologise to his sister and see his little brother again.

"A little help, would be nice," his voice cracked to anything in the unknown gloom, a single tear soaking into his balaclava.

The darkness, however, did not answer. In fact, it did the last thing he wanted it too, it over took him, and he fell to the concrete floor, eyes shut, and breathing shallow…

* * *

It had been a whole day since Mikey had woken up, and already, Raph was at breaking point.

Twenty-four hours ago, Mikey had brought the horrifying fact to his attention that he could not hit him upside the head. This was bad, as it was the only thing that kept Michelangelo from sending them all running up the walls. Plus, it kept Raph happy.

Now, all he could do was take it out on his punching bag as his youngest brother's voice continued to drone on behind him. With each annoying note, his punches became harder and more defined.

"I'm bored…"

"This is boring…"

"I want something to do…"

"Raphie, will you hang out with me…"

"Hey Raph, knock knock…"

"Raph, what'cha doing?"

"I'm bored…"

Michelangelo could tell by now that his brother was getting to the end of his tether, and it made him grin menacingly. After all, he really had nothing else to do, and annoying his older brother seemed like a good idea. Then again, everything seemed like a good idea until you had to deal with the consequences.

Growling loudly to emphasise his frustration, the red clad reptile hit the swinging punching bad particularly hard before watching it slow to a halt, the sweat gleaming off his green skin as he heaved deep breaths. If Mikey didn't shut up soon, he was going to crack. He was trying his best to keep his cool, but even Leo wouldn't be able to take the youngest turtles constant chattering.

"Mikey," He warned, turning on his little brother, eyes narrowed. "If you don't stop bugging me, I swear I'll…"

"Raph, you leave him alone," Sam chastised gently, looking up from her book with a stern gaze. "Maybe if you actually played his game with him for a while, he would stop annoying you," she suggested, giving Michelangelo a pointed look, telling him that he should really stop annoying his brother.

"I've done nothing this time, and I still get all the shtick!" Raph exclaimed outrageously, glaring hotly at both Sam and his youngest sibling before throwing his arms up in defeat and stalking to the sofa. "Fine! But I swear Mikey, annoy me once more after this, and I'll kick you're sorry ass. Stitches or…"

However, as Raphael was about to finish his sentence, the perimeter alarm rang out through the lair, the shrill bell making each figure turn about in surprise.

"Duck and cover! We're under attack!" Mikey squealed, jumping to his feet and patting his belt for his nun-chucks, which Master Splinter had confiscated earlier after he'd accidentally hit his head showing off. It seems his body still wasn't full functional.

It was at that moment Leo and Donnie both entered the family area of the lair; Leo with his 'leader' façade already in place, and Donnie with his duffle bag swung over his shoulder.

"Donnie, what the shells going on?" Raph growled, fingers tapping the hilt of his sai.

"A foot ninja set of the perimeter alarm, but then collapsed in one of the tunnels," Don explained, a some what confused expression on his face.

"Just one foot ninja?" Leo asked, raising an eye ridge suspiciously.

"It looks that way, though I can't be too sure," Don nodded, sliding his bo-staff from his belt.

"Mikey, stay here," Leo ordered, motioning for Sam and Raph to follow himself and Donatello.

"Aw, but I wanna go!" Mikey pouted, bright blue eyes putting on their best cute display.

"No Mikey. We can't risk it, stay here and explain to Master Splinter where we are," Leo snipped, verbally putting his foot down on the matter, much to the youngest turtle's disappointment.

"What do we do if there are more foot ninja?" Sam asked, adjusting her swords on her belt, not overjoyed about fighting in her current clothing, but making do all the same.

"We kick them off our turf," Raph grinned, whipping out a single sai and twirling it expertly in his hand. "After all, they're trespassin'."

Leo just nodded in agreement, a small smirk tugging the corners of his mouth upwards as he lead the four of them out of the lair and into the shadows of the sewer tunnels. He thought it best to be overly cautious rather than dead.

"Okay, silence, stick to the shadows," Leo whispered, feet barely making a sound as he moved forward through the gloom with a confidence one could only gain from years of perfecting ninjitsu.

It didn't take too long for them to find the fallen ninja, especially with Donnie's directions, and the fact that the turtles basically knew these tunnels off by heart. And luckily for them, there seemed to be no signs of any other foot ninja. Well, unluckily for Raph; he was hoping he could've released the pent up frustration he'd gathered earlier.

"Do you think it's safe to take a closer look?" Sam hissed, narrowing her eyes as she tried to get a better picture of the slouched form before them.

Leo took a few moments to scan the surrounding area, before nodding and allowing Donatello to advance, the purple clad turtle already removing a torch from his bag. Raph and Sam took look out duty on fearless leaders orders, whilst the remaining two turtles knelt down beside the unconscious figure.

"Woah," Don grimaced, shining the torch over the poor figure, the light immediately picking out the stains of red on the floor around him. "This guy's been beaten badly," he reached out and checked for a pulse. "He's still alive… barely. What should we do Leo?"

"We let him die," Raph growled, turning to take a quick look. "He's a foot ninja. If one of us were in his position, he'd let us die. Fair is fair I'd say."

Leo stayed silent, eyes staring intently at the barely breathing figure in black. On one hand, he agreed with Raphael; this could after all be some crude ploy by Karai to kill them all. Yet, as his eyes watched the figure, his better judgement shined through. He was not Karai; he was not merciless, and he would not let the Foot ninja die.

"We are not heartless Raphael," Leo stated. "We'll save his life. Let's take him back to the lair."

"Leo, are you serious! I mean, come on!" Raph almost yelled. "It's a damn foot ninja. You know, the same foot ninja that try to wax our shells every time we go to the surface. Have you finally cracked, bro?"

"Listen, Raph," Leo growled. "If we leave him here, his blood might as well be on our hands. I will not be that cruel! He comes with us." He paused for a moment, and looked back suspiciously. "But we remove his mask." _At least then we can see if he's awake or not_, Leo thought to himself.

He knew his brother was right, but that didn't make any of this seem any better from Raphs point of view. A foot ninja was a foot ninja after all, and all they had given him and his family was pain and misery. He turned his head to look at Sam, raising an eye ridge in question.

Sam merely shrugged in reply. The lair was not her home, and the Foot not her enemy; she had no place to cast opinion. Yet, she wasn't in a very trusting mood, and would've just as happily left the foot ninja to die. For the first time, she gained a good look at the black clad figure. Narrowing her eyes, she had the sudden feeling that she recognised this particular ninja, but she couldn't place it.

A small nudge in her side made her look up to see Raph staring at her curiously. Sam shook her head in dismissal, "Nothing. Just thought I recognised him."

"That'd be a first. They all look the same to me," Raph shrugged, taking his eyes away from the young female to stare at the fallen figure in disgust.

Donatello silently agreed with his older brother as he wrapped a couple of the larger wounds up with some cloth. He'd put off carrying out his eldest brother's last order for fear of what he might find underneath. It was an irrational fear; a stupid fear, and a fear to which he could not place a source, but there was just something about it that worried him. After all, you wear a mask to hide something.

He and his brothers all wore masks. Donnie didn't really know why, as it didn't exactly help the whole 'hide your identity' situation, seeing as they were four giant mutant turtles and were pretty much identifiable whatever they wore, but they wore them all the same. He'd gotten so used to his mask over the years, that he felt bare without it.

"Earth to Donnie? Yo, Don, let's get this show on the road," Raphs ill tempered voice filtered across the musings of Donatellos mind, shaking him from his thoughts.

Sighing, he shot a small glare at his elder brother before reaching out and grasping the top of the mask in his hand, slowly pulling it from the foot ninjas head. He was careful not to grab any hair, though he was sure that the unconscious male would not be able to feel it.

As he dropped the mask to his side, he took in the soft oriental features of the male before him. Guessing from the facial structure, and small amount of facial hair, the turtle presumed this particular foot ninja was in his early to mid twenties, and had already lived a very troubled life- Even in unconsciousness, the man seemed to bear the worlds weight on his brow. It reminded him eerily of Leo when he turned into Raph-mark two after they had finally defeated the Utrom shredder for good.

Donatello was once more brought out from his thoughts by the sounds of heavy footsteps advancing towards him. The footsteps sounded hollow, almost forced and he turned his head to watch Sam fall to her knees beside him, a look of such intense emotion lining her features, he dared not move.

"I know this face," She said softly, and he saw her hand reach out and briefly stroke the olive skin of the now mask-less ninja before it retracted sharply to her side.

Don's breath hitched as he immediately saw the resemblance, but he dare not say anything. Instead, he put a hesitant but comforting hand on the young females shoulder. She didn't shake it off; she barely acknowledged it was even there.

"For almost two years, I hear no word," her voice was barely audible, and it was only due to their heightened senses that the three turtles picked anything up.

"Come on," Leo said, motioning for Raph to help Donnie with the unconscious male. "Let's get back to the lair."

The eldest turtle helped Sam up, and could feel how tense her muscles were. His eyes stared with concern, but she never looked up- her eyes were trained to the ground, watching her footsteps so intently it was as if she had to tell her legs to move. It worried him to see her like; with so much emotion running through her that he could practically feel it radiating off her skin. But she was so closed, as if she'd suddenly erected a wall between herself and the world, blocking anyone from trying to reach her; to help her. Leo was worried that she might implode.

Then again, the reappearance of a brother you previously assumed dead would probably do that to you.

* * *

**A/n**: There! An update before the end of February! Phew, didn't think I'd get it done in time. Lol. In the last two sections, I apologise for any errors, but I just wanted to get this chapter up. Please, if you spot any, let me know!

Now, feed the hungry authoress? Please?


	14. Chapter 14

**A/n**: OMG! An update! Anyways, got my results back from college, and trying to get a job, and work experience, and there's more exams, etc, so apologies for the lateness.

I, unfortunately, do not own the TMNT. At all. Seriously, that's just unfair.

_- It isn't life that weighs us down, its how we carry it -_

Donatello had done his best. It was all he really could do. He'd stripped Sam's brother down, cleaned and bandaged all his wounds; even given him a shot of antibiotic's for any possible infections. Now, he had to play the waiting game.

He liked to think of himself as a patient turtle; an understanding turtle. But he just found himself restless of late. What with Danny still missing, and now the sudden reappearance of Ben, he found his patience wearing thin, and everything seemed to grate upon his nerves. It was a lot to take in after all, and he was surprised at how well Sam was doing. Surprised and completely worried. Under the circumstances, he was sure no one should be as calm as she was managing to be.

Hopefully one of his brothers might be able to get her to open up. He'd tried so many times after they had returned; and failed. Bottling ones feelings was not good; he knew from first hand experience, what with Leo and Raphael. Even Michelangelo had his patches.

Sighing, he held his head in his hands, closing his eyes and taking several deep breaths to calm himself. He'd found himself doing this a lot lately, and drinking an awful lot more coffee than he thought was healthy. It was the only way he could stay sane, and relatively awake with the amount of sleep he seemed to be getting.

Rubbing his eyes exasperatedly, he turned back to his computer and stared at the screen blankly, the current program that streamed down the page taking longer than he first assumed. Then again, it was a distraction, and he didn't need much brain power for it, which he was profoundly thankful for. He doubt he could concentrate on anything worthwhile for more than a second in his current state.

"Hey, Donnie, here's that coffee you asked for," a female voice muttered quietly from the doorway, her sudden appearance making him jump.

"Thanks Sam, just stick it on the desk," He flashed a weak grateful smile before turning back to his screen, tapping lazily on a few keys for a moment before stopping and staring blankly once again.

"You should really get some sleep instead of drinking that stuff," she chastised gently, placing the steaming cup carefully on the specified area of the desk.

"Mm," he replied lamely, stifling the yawn that threatened to ripple through his body.

"If you don't go to bed willingly in the next hour, I will _make_ you get some sleep," Sam threatened, poking his arm playfully.

This earned a smile from the bleary eyed turtle, who nodded wisely in reply, "Fine, fine. Just let me get this system check finished and I'll hit the hay."

"Good," Sam smiled weakly. "I'll leave you to it then." With one last glance at the turtle in purple, she left his lab with barely a sound, shutting the door quietly behind her.

Aforementioned turtle turned and watched the door shut with a worried frown. She was trying to take far too much on at once, and he knew what that sort of stress would do to you. It was at times like these he wished he could wave a magic wand and just make everything good again.

But things like that just didn't happen.

* * *

Darkness.

That's all he could see, all he could feel, and all he could hear.

It surprised him actually; he didn't know that you could hear darkness, or feel it. It was extraordinary- like being engulfed by cotton wool; everything was dull and suffocating. Yet, strangely comforting.

He knew what the darkness was; it was simple and had no complications. There was no fear, no worry, no sorrow, no _surprises_- it was just, nothing. He liked that word; nothing. It described the gloom almost perfectly.

But the nothing wasn't perfect, which slightly confused him.

As he grew accustomed to the perpetual night, he began to notice that it wasn't just black that swirled about him. But different shades of black mixed together and splashed across his world; deep blacks, navy blues, greys and deep, rich purples and reds. So deep were these colours that they could've, in fact, been easily mistaken for black at any first glance.

It was a myriad of swirling colours, and over time, these swirling colours began to get brighter. Soon, the different colours were easily distinguishable between each other; no longer did they represent one solid mass to him, but several.

Of course, to him, this wasn't a good thing. It meant that, whilst the feeling of being suffocated was lifting, his comforting world was depleting, and slowly disappearing before his eyes. The colours hurt and scared him; all jumbled together in a chaotic vortex of worry. All the time, it just seemed to get worse.

But a figure was beginning to be formed from the colours. A strange, but familiar figure; someone he knew he could trust with his life. He didn't know how he knew, he just did, and it washed away some of the fear.

This figure took the colours that were beginning to overtake his mind, and sorted them so that they no longer seemed so bad. In fact, it made them all rather pleasant, and he began to wonder why he was ever worried in the first place.

The figure didn't speak. The figure didn't move. It just stood there, like a guardian angel, its hair flowing into the colours as they began to swim in an orderly fashion through his head. It was so wonderful to know that there was someone who was looking after him; who would scare the monsters and demons away, even if he didn't know who she was.

She…

Yes, he was sure that she was a she. Not an it, or a he, but a she. A female watcher who bathed him in a gentle warmth, chasing away the nightmares that had plagued his sleep ever since…

He whimpered. He didn't want to remember. He never wanted to remember. It was too hard to think of what had been that he just wanted to stay in the colours forever, and never wake to the world of torture and lies he had to endure every day since…

Shaking the glistening tears from his eyes, he reached out to the female, wanting to be held; wanting to be told that everything would soon be as it should be; wanting to be told that he was safe.

He wanted to be home.

But as the female watcher stood there, silent and still as always, she began to disappear, just as his simple darkness had. Her appearances had been getting shorter and shorter each night; soon he feared that she would never appear again.

Crying out to her, arms still outstretched, he began to feel a rough pair of hands shaking him. But he refused to wake; he didn't want to return to reality; he didn't want his guardian angel to leave him again.

"No," his tiny voice sobbed as his eyes unwillingly opened, arms falling limply to his sides, realising that he'd actually been reaching out for help this time.

"Same dream every night," a gruff voice murmured venomously from the doorway that led into his dingy little room. "Get up Kagemori, the Master is demanding your presence."

His small head didn't acknowledge that anyone had spoken; all he did was stare blankly at the dirty ceiling above him, listening for the slamming of the door that told him he was once more alone. As soon as it came, he gave in and let the tears flow from his bloodshot eyes; the salty liquid streaming through the thin layer of dirt he had accumulated on his face from being locked up in this room for… however long he'd been resisting.

Sniffing loudly, he wiped his eyes across his sleeve, bringing the world back into a weird sense of clarity.

He had to get up now; he knew what happened if he didn't. Wincing at the thought of gaining another bruise upon his arm, he pushed himself off his bed and pulled on his shoes, doing all this as slowly as possible, but quickly enough not to gain a beating.

It was lucky he even remembered the beatings after his sessions with the Master in the bright, white washed room. Each time he was summoned, he lost a tiny bit of his memory- his precious memories of all those happy times with his grandfather and his siblings; even some of his parents and the turtles. They were slowly trying to erase his past, and all his good feelings; trying to turn him…

But he resisted. He knew that his sister would find him and rescue him; he knew that she would never give up, so neither would he. And he would be ready when she came for him.

If only he could remember her name…

* * *

Ow.

That was the only notion running through his clouded mind as he slowly began to wake from a dark unconsciousness where dismembered images of his past were his only companion.

Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow.

Why did he hurt so much? Oh yes, that's right, Karai. He remembered now.

So how was he still alive?

With a lot of effort, he cracked open his eyes, his vision blurred and unreliable for a brief moment before it adjusted to the soft light that bathed the room in which he currently inhabited.

A lab, or so it seemed, was his current residence. Then again, he could be wrong. Labs had metal tables, and cabinets full of vials. This room merely had an oak table, and several cabinets full of medicinal equipment. It made him think of a hospital; kind of smelt like one too.

Most of the walls were actually made of stone (which didn't really speak 'hospital', so he dismissed that guess from his mind), and he lie on a softened table. On further examination, he found that it was, in fact, a bed. A soft bed to be exact; something he wasn't at all used to and found extremely comfortable.

He attempted to use his left arm to push himself off the bed, but found it incredibly stiff; so stiff in fact that he couldn't bend it at all. He turned his head to gaze at it, and blinked in disbelief at the solid white cast wrapped around his forearm. He then lifted his head to gaze in wonder at his other bandaged wounds.

Well, at last things seemed to be in his favour. Though for how long, he did not know.

It occurred to him that someone must have found him, taken him in, and cared for him whilst he was unconscious. For this he was incredibly grateful; he was sure he would've died otherwise.

But a sudden wave of suspicion washed over him. He had no idea who these kind strangers were, or what their intentions could be. For all he knew, they might not be his quarry, but some weird underground race that would sacrifice him to a god or something.

Nose scrunching in disbelief at his own idiotic thoughts, he managed to sit up, wincing at the pain that shot through his body whenever he moved. It was quite irritating indeed to be sitting in an unknown home, with who knows what outside, and being unable to do anything about it due to the fact that all your body wished to do was collapse into a jellied heap.

Huffing noisily at the annoyance of it all, he swung his legs over the side of the bed, and unwillingly left the safety and warmth of the sheets. Although his entire being cried out in protest to the forced actions, he continued onward. If there was one thing he would not do, it was give up.

Leaning heavily on his good leg, he limped to the doorway, noticeable only for the sliver of gold that crept through the cracks between the ceiling and the floor. And, using his good arm, he opened said door and peered out through it silently.

It would be an understatement to say the scene that met his eyes surprised him; but made him feel undeniable jealous, saddened, guilty, and slightly confused as well.

He looked down from his vantage point onto what he guessed was the family room due to the huge home entertainment system, large sofa, and worn armchairs. On the sofa sat his sister, snuggled up between a familiar dark haired male, and a red banded mutant turtle. She looked troubled, but comfortable, as if just the presence of the two males eased her worries. The conversation between them flowed easily, and he often heard them laugh, the soft hum of the TV only acting as a background noise.

He frowned. He'd forgotten how much he missed hearing his sister laugh; forgotten how much he missed spending time with his family. Apparently, during the time he'd been away, he'd forgotten a lot of things.

"Hey Mike, are you coming to watch this film or what?" The red banded turtle shouted, his voice dragging Takumi back from his thoughts.

"Good popcorn takes time. But you wouldn't understand, you Neanderthal," an orange masked turtle stalked towards the small group, beak stuck high into the air as his awful British accent rang through the room.

"What the…? That's a big word for you Mikey," Red glared playfully at orange as the seemingly younger of the two took a seat on one of the armchairs, popcorn bowl held protectively in his arms.

"Besides, if anyone's the Neanderthal, it's Uncle C," Sam smirked, earning herself a playful nudge.

His train of thought wandered again as his ears could no longer cope with the strain of trying to pick up the conversation that went on below him. He found himself turning green with envy at the sight of the mutant turtles playing happy families, and with his sister none the less.

It then hit him who the man was. It was Uncle Casey; the man sitting beside his sister was their Uncle Casey. That's why he'd recognised him before. Needless to say, from the last time he'd seen the male, he'd definitely changed. He seemed more adult somehow; as if he'd finally taken the time to sort his life out.

A guilty flush ran through his being. He should've sorted his life out a long time ago, and he definitely should've told his sister where he was going. He wanted to go down there right now and apologise for everything; wanted to hold her and Ryou in his arms and just tell them everything. But that wasn't going to happen- there were just too many unresolved issues between them, and he knew Sam's temper; she wasn't going to let go of this easily.

He clutched his side as a sudden bolt of pain shot through his stomach, and attempted to steady himself upon the doorframe with his broken arm. In hindsight, that wasn't the best idea he'd ever had.

His broken arm slipped as the door flew open dramatically and he collapsed in an unbelievably loud heap in the doorway to the lab. He cringed, using his good arm to push himself off the floor as the sudden pounding of feet alerted him to the fact that he was no longer alone.

"Steady there," he felt a pair of hesitant arms wrap themselves around him, and shrugged them off angrily.

"You and your stupid pride," a voice he recognised chastised him icily, and he felt a smaller, weaker pair of arms hoist him up onto his legs, ignoring all the silent complaints that he made.

As he stood, he finally gained a closer look at his rescuers. It appeared as though all four turtles were in fact here, along with their rat Master, his Uncle, his sister, and an unknown red haired woman who kept staring at him with concern.

He felt like a prisoner, surrounded by the wardens.

Immediately, the defensive walls went up; his eyes setting to a suspicious glare as his gaze darted from one figure to the next. "Where am I?" His own voice sounded alien to him- cracked and worn, as if someone had pushed sand paper down his throat.

"You're with the people who saved your sorry ass," his sister's voice snapped, and he turned his head to look at her.

There was a hollowness to her eyes that told him of the hardships she'd been through; of the nightmares she'd lived. But they were still her eyes; still the deep chocolate eyes that had pulled him through so many dark times.

His face softened as he looked at her, taking in the new and old scars; the colour and length of her hair; how much she'd grown since he left; and how much she'd aged. He opened his mouth to apologise, but shut it just as quickly, averting his gaze ashamedly.

The sigh he heard just then filled him with guilt as she shifted his weight more comfortably over her shoulders. It was then that he realised he had in fact been leaning on her for support. Quickly, he straightened himself and removed his arm, allowing his own legs to bare his weight.

"So, um," Casey started, trying to break the awkward silence that had so suddenly formed over the group. "How're ya feelin'?"

"Fine," Takumi answered curtly, eyebrow raised slightly at his Uncle. "You look better since last I saw you," the Japanese lilt to his voice suddenly becoming noticeable when compared with his Uncles thick New York accent.

"Yeah, well, you know. Times change an' all that," Casey offered a brief smile as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

Another silence.

Takumi began to tire, especially seeing as how his body seemed to be using up most of its energy trying to heal itself. Turning on his heels, he limped back into the lab, returning to the soft mattress of the bed. "How long have I been here?"

"Day and a half," the purple banded turtle spoke, appearing quickly through the doorway, followed by the rest of the small group.

He looked up in silent shock, before nonchalantly swinging his legs back upon the bed. Perhaps making his presence known wasn't the best idea; the situation just seemed to go from awkward, to a down right 'kill-me-now' scenario.

"Okay, let's just cut the crap here," his sister snapped. He knew what was coming. "Why the hell were you down here?"

Okay, maybe he didn't know what was coming.

Blinking stupidly at her, he turned to gaze at each turtle separately. "Do you want the truth, or would you prefer a lie?" He took their silence to mean that they didn't want to waste their time. "Mistr… Karai wants the turtles dead. She thought that my relationship with you would help me gain contact with these mutants. In doing so, I could lead them to her, or her to them."

Yet another silence. He was getting sick of these.

"How do we know you're telling us the truth?" His sister spoke with such suspicion that he was truly hurt.

"Her goals are not my own, I never intended for it to go this far. I…" He was cut off.

"You joined the foot, Ben! How could you join them and _not_ know what you were getting yourself into," Sam cried out loudly. "Are you really that naïve? But of course, you never actually think things through, do you? Just leave on a fucking whim. Now look what's happened!"

"Sam," the red banded mutant placed a firm hand on Sam's shoulder. Takumi half expected, and half hoped, for her to blow up in his face, but when she actually began to calm down, it tore him in two.

"_Hoshi_," he pleaded. "I would never lie to you. Please, believe me."

"It's not me you have to prove yourself too," she said through clenched teeth, and folded her arms across her chest. "_Ben_."

Takumi flinched; the venom in her voice so sharp it pierced his soul.

"It certainly sounds like Karai," the blue masked mutant reasoned, his eyes staring down at Takumi like laser beams.

"We have no choice but to believe him. Donatello, check his wounds, make sure he hasn't torn open any stitches. Michelangelo, go and prepare something for our guest to eat. Leonardo and myself will be in the dojo," the aged rat said, turning with a click of his cane, whispering something to the red masked turtle before leaving with the eldest of his sons.

"Order please Monsieur," Michelangelo smiled, standing to attention beside the young mans bedside.

"Just get him some porridge with strawberry jam," Sam told Mikey softly, eyes never leaving her older brother. "Thanks Mike."

Takumi blinked in surprise, but his passive façade never faltered. In his younger years, whenever he was ill, their mother always used to make him a bowl full of porridge, with either honey or jam drizzled over the top to sweeten it. To him, it was the ultimate comfort food, and just the memory of it almost caused a smile to stretch his lips. He was surprised that Sam still remembered, or cared.

"One order of porridge, coming up," the youngest turtle smiled at both Kagemori's before leaving the room to its four remaining occupants.

"Why the renaissance?" he broke the brief silence as the purple banded mutant began to check over his wounds, to which he obliged willingly.

"It was the first book Master Splinter found after we had been mutated," the turtle currently checking his wounds murmured. "He gave us names from four of the artists he read of in that book. Lift your arms as far as you can please."

The oriental male did as he was asked, and lifted both his arms. He found that his left arm ached too much to be lifted as far as his right, and it stretched his stomach too much to lift either too high. He watched as the turtle busied himself with the sutures across his stomach, checking each stitch before nodding in satisfaction and backing away, allowing the eldest Kagemori to lower his arms.

"It all looks as though it's healing nicely, but I wouldn't try to do anything overly strenuous in the next week," Donatello diagnosed, his eyes doing a general sweep over the male. "Especially with that wound in your leg."

"Thanks Donnie," Sam said with a smile, finally breaking her gaze away from her older brother.

"Anytime," the turtle smiled gently back, before turning to Takumi with a placid frown. "Why _did_ Karai do this to you?"

"She said it would appeal to your sensitive nature if I was injured," He scowled darkly, eyes glaring blankly at a spot on the opposite wall, watching the cracks in the brick work, but not actually seeing them.

"I don't understand why you joined the Foot in the first place," Casey stated thoughtfully, earning a nudge from April who glared at him warningly.

"I have my reasons," Takumi said sharply, eyes momentarily glancing at his Uncle, before flickering to his sister.

"Oh really," she retorted sadistically. "Personally, I can't think of anything that could condone that sort of action."

His facial expression softened, and he leant back into the bed, eyes closing tiredly. "I followed the last of the Hokkaido clan from Japan. The Foot was my cover," he explained, his voice cracked and worn. "There are only a dozen of them left. I was so close…"

Sam pursed her lips, and watched her older brother silently. A part of her understood his actions completely at that moment, but most of her still resented him for leaving in the first place. Yet, she also felt incredibly nervous; the thought of telling her older brother about the kidnapping of Danny was causing a bubbling pit of nausea to suddenly over take her stomach.

Opening her mouth to talk, Sam swallowed hard, her tongue suddenly feeling like a dead weight in her mouth. She clenched her fists in anger, her knuckles cracking and turning white from the force before she scowled dangerously and stalked out of the infirmary, leaving a concerned looking Raphael in her wake.

"I'll go talk to 'er," Casey volunteered, forcing a smile at his best friend before rushing after his emotional niece.

"I'll go see if Mikey needs any help with the food," April spoke up soon after, wandering out of the room, leaving Raphael and Donatello alone with the wounded Kagemori.

Needless to say, it was unbelievably awkward.

"When will I be ready to leave?" Takumi finally broke the silence, eyes glancing up at the purple clad turtle, whom he presumed would have the answer.

But before Donatello got a chance to answer, Raphael cut in, "What?" His voice had such a sharp edge, Takumi was surprised he didn't start to bleed. "After two years, you just turn up out'a the blue, stick around to get the shit kicked out of ya, and now you want to leave, _without_ even trying to sort things out with your sister?! How much of an asshole are you!"

Takumi stared in disbelief at this sudden outburst, and narrowed his eyes at the red clad turtle. "How _dare_ you. You know _nothing_ about the circumstances, _nothing_ about me, and _nothing_ about my family; _especially_ my sister," he retorted angrily.

"I know enough to say that right now, she's probably tearin' herself up about this whole thing," Raph spat viciously, hands unconsciously curling into fists. "That she's had to deal with so much over the past two years, all because you up 'n' left like a little chicken-shit. How hard do you think it was for her bringing up Danny all by herself, hm?"

For once, Takumi couldn't retort to anything that he said, because everything he said was true. But that didn't make him feel any better, and his blood still boiled at the very tone of the turtle's voice. "You know what, you're right. I shouldn't have left," He said, a thin frown lining his features as he locked onto Raphael's gaze, equalling the fire he saw there. "But that gives you no right to judge me. I care deeply for my sister and my brother, and would travel to the ends of the earth for them, even if it meant sacrificing myself."

"I think, perhaps, this conversation should be going on between you and Sam, not you and my brother," Donatello finally spoke up, his arms folded across his plastron in a stern manner, eyes glancing at both Raphael and Takumi.

The two other males looked to the purple clad turtle, and then back to each other. They realised, with a single glance, that Donnie was in fact right, and with a silent stare, agreed that they would speak no more on the matter.

* * *

She was suffocating under the pressure; her whole world was collapsing in on itself. Everything she'd tried so hard to build and protect was crumbling beneath her feet, and every second that flew by took another piece of her normality with it.

Her steps echoed through her mind as she walked, stopping only when she found herself in the doorway of the room that the turtles let her stay in with her brother. It seemed cold, knowing that her little Ryou would not be sharing it with her. She hugged herself against a sudden chill, her jaw clenching to try and push away the oncoming tears.

"It's goin'ta be okay, you know that, right?" A deep New York accent assured her, placing a large comforting hand on her shoulder.

Sam jumped slightly at the appearance of her Uncle, shocked that she had not heard him approach, and slightly guilty that she had been neglecting her ninjitsu. She'd been more absorbed in her thoughts then she first realised.

"I just don't know anymore," She sighed dejectedly, turning to her Uncle with shimmering eyes. "This time, I just can't see how everything's going to turn out for the better."

Casey watched his niece with a worried frown. Most people assumed that he lacked the emotional maturity to deal with any sort of serious situation, but he wasn't as dense as he first appeared. He'd dealt with his share of hurt, and knew how it could affect those that you cared for.

"Big Bro's back now though. It has to be a good thing," He said softly, rubbing Sam's shoulder in a calming gesture.

"Yeah, battered and broken," She spat bitterly, eyes glaring at the ground. "Not word one from his for two years! Now, out of nowhere, he just turns up with the Foot insignia planted across his chest. I… I can't…"

"I know it's hard," Casey cut in, lifting her head so that she would look at him. "But nothing's ever gonna be easy. You gotta fight for what you believe in, and I know you still believe in Ben, otherwise you wouldn't be beatin' ya'self up like this."

Sam watched her Uncle, and shook her head disbelievingly, "When did you become the wise one?"

Casey snorted in amusement, a cheeky grin stretching his lips, "Nah. I've just been around a lot me."

Sam chuckled, roughly wiping away a stray tear that escaped the corner of her eye. "Yeah, I guess," She replied, letting her voice fall into silence. "I just… I missed him when he left. And now with Danny… I… If he left again, I don't know how I'd cope."

No longer did her well built walls hold back the torrent of tears that she'd concealed for so long. They broke through in streams that fell down her delicate cheeks, and soon onto her Uncles shirt as he held her close in a warm embrace. She returned it, seeking the comfort that she'd always needed, clinging tightly onto the dark blue shirt that hung off his built frame as his deep voice cooed words of comfort into her ear.

"It's goin' ta be fine, I promise," Casey hushed, running his hand through her hair gently. "I ain't going anywhere, and neither are the guys. No matter what happens, we'll be 'ere. You'll never be alone. Together, we'll figure things out."

Slowly, her sobbing began to ease, and the tears soon passed; her Uncles words driving away the sorrow, replacing it with hope. Sniffling quietly, she pulled away, wiping her eyes roughly on her sleeve. "Thanks," She murmured, offering a weak but genuine smile up at Casey.

"Might as well try to be an Uncle, eh?" He teased lightly, a wide smile curling the corners of his mouth as he tucked some stray hair behind his niece's ear.

Sam tutted, a chuckled escaping her throat, "You're the best Uncle a girl could ask for. Even if you are a crazed nut."

Casey laughed, nodding in agreement, "Well then, you gotta promise this crazed nut summink."

"What?" She asked, blinking suspiciously up at her Uncle's face, her eyes still red and puffy from her crying session.

"That you talk to your bro," He replied seriously, his eyes gazing intensely at Sam. "You hav'ta sort this thing out. Promise me Sam. Promise me that you'll at least try."

Her face contorted in one of bitter disgust at the mention of her brother, but it quickly passed as she turned to face the floor, heaving a huge sigh. Slowly, she raised her head to look at her Uncle, and nodded, her lips pursed in a regretful frown, "I promise."

"Good, I was afraid I might've had'ta take drastic action," Casey puffed out his chest intimidatingly whilst a huge grin plastered itself across his face.

"What, get April to talk to me?" Sam teased with a small smirk, earning a glare from her Uncle. She'd already guessed that Casey's one weakness was the independent red head; that and he'd already admitted that they were dating.

They stood in a comfortable silence for a moment, before Casey nudged his niece suggestively. "So, what are you still with me for? Go!"

She blinked stupidly before holding her hands up in mock surrender and backing away with a smirk crawling across her face, "I'm going, I'm going." Shaking her head in disbelief, she turned, and began to make her way back towards the infirmary. But, she paused, and turned back for just a brief moment, "Hey, Uncle C?"

"Yeah?" He looked up, surprised, raising one of his thick dark eyebrows.

"Thanks," she smiled sheepishly, before disappearing round the corner.

Casey watched her leave with a proud smile, shaking his head in disbelief before he went to find a certain fiery red-headed female.

* * *

**A/n:** YAY! It's done. Though this probably won't get updated again for a while, because I want to get my other fic updated before I do this one again- it's been kind of neglected. So, just warning you.

Now, um, I was just wondering, press the button below and leave me a nice review? Please?


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